You Know Who You Are

Spotted outside my dentist's office a few days ago, this car had some funny bumpers stickers on it but this one was the funniest. The intended audience? I think you know who you are, even if you don't want to admit it.

Nuns on the Run

Okay, more like nuns on a walk, but that doesn't rhyme so cunningly. Hooray for warm weather, an empty afternoon, and not feeling wretched, finally! I took Frodo for a walk in the Old North End and came across these sisters, who were presumably on their way to Monument Valley Park to take advantage of the balmy temps (it was 67° F, extraordinary for the first week of February here). I'm not sure why they were wearing such heavy coats -- it was quite warm despite the wind. These ladies were probably coming from Penrose Hospital, a Catholic facility a few blocks away. Nuns don't live at the hospital but in a building nearby. And hey, even nuns need time to nip away for a few minutes and enjoy a beautiful day.

King Sized Saint Francis of Assisi

Yesterday I had to meet with my surgeon in advance of the gallbladder surgery I'll be undergoing at the end of the month. His office is next to Saint Francis Hospital, which has a very large statue of the man himself to greet you as you drive into the parking lot. I have to admit that, even though I'm not a fan of organized religion (and that is an understatement), I don't mind this piece. It's kind of nice if you don't look at it in the context of Catholicism. Just a cool metal statue of a guy with a dove.

Hail, Mary

An arty farty angle on Saint Mary's Cathedral, captured on August 30, 2019.

Shiloh Chapel

There is a lovely Art Déco church near my house called Shiloh Chapel. It's quite small but I personally think it's one of the prettiest churches in our city. (You know how I feel about Art Déco!) The congregation takes great care of this little chapel. It's hard to get a good picture of it, because it sits on a very busy corner, and as you can see, there are large trees in front of it. The other day I just happened to be waiting at that intersection for a green light, and I just happened to be at exactly the right angle, and the light just happened to be quite lovely, and I just happened to have a camera with me. Bingo! Finally got a picture of it after all these years of living only blocks away. Such a pretty church.

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First Lutheran Church on February 3, 2018. This church has a very lovely old building with a deep, colonnaded, wraparound porch, seen here, and a very midcentury modern building right next to it. An odd combination for certain!

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A favorite subject, Grace Episcopal Church, taken on December 8, 2018.

In the Care Of

Here's the assisted living facility at the Sisters of Saint Francis Abbey. I don't know how old it is, but it rather reminds me of Main Hall at UCCS, actually, which was also a tuberculosis sanatorium back in the day.

Houses of the Holy

The Sisters of Saint Francis Abbey is open to one and all. There's a large Catholic (of course) church there, as well as multiple facilities for gatherings big and small. There's a beautiful cemetery for the nuns who spent their lives at Saint Francis, and there's a large assisted living center. But I don't know where the nuns live! A couple of rather nice Craftsman era homes look down on it all from the hills above. Maybe that's where they hang their habits at night.

And now, for your listening pleasure...

Consumption-sumption, What's Your Function?

Back in its early years, Colorado Springs was THE go-to place to seek a cure for tuberculosis, or consumption as it was called back then. Or at least seek relief from it, anyway. Our dry, sunny climate helped ease the misery of many a TB sufferer. The Sisters of Saint Francis Abbey was once the site of a tuberculosis sanatorium, and they've got a tuberculosis hut to prove it. You still see these around town, in people's backyards in the older part of the city. I always wanted one. I figure it would make a good gardening shed.

This statue of Mary looks rather like it's giving the old side eye.

And now, for your listening pleasure...

 

The Fran Man

Yesterday was mostly yucky and gloomy, so even though I brought a camera with me to brunch, I was unmotivated to actually drive around afterward and look for photography subjects. Thankfully Pat had the idea of going to the Sisters of Saint Francis Abbey, aka the Sisters of Saint Francis of Perpetual Adoration. I've blogged about it before but I'm always happy to revisit it on the blog because it's so serene and pretty. Here's Saint Francis himself, near the entrance of the abbey. He's the patron saint of animals, so it's only appropriate that he's been christened with a little bird poop. I'm sure he doesn't mind.

Bah!

I didn't make it outside with a camera today. I didn't make it outside at all. In fact, I didn't even get a shower until about 5:00 PM! I spent the entire day in front of my computer. That's sometimes what it's like when you're self employed, and a deadline is deadline. I did get a lot of work done and I'm happy about that.

So for today here's a snap from ye olde archives, Saint Mary's Cathedral in 2019. Maybe tomorrow I'll have time to get out there and take some new pictures. Cheers!

New Wave

I've never noticed this cute little mural-adorned church in Knob Hill before. It's obviously not new, but it's new to me.

Quiet

 

Downtown was strangely quiet last Sunday morning. Even Saint Mary's Cathedral seemed deserted.

Opening the Vault

I've been absent from the blog for several days because I've been so swamped with work, argh! Today's plan to take time for pictures didn't pan out, either. So instead of skipping another day, I decided to dig through my archives and find a few pictures that I've over the last few years. I'll post them over the next few days. Hopefully on Friday my schedule won't be so crazy and I'll have a chance to create some new material. Until then, here's a statue of Mary that lives in front of Saint Mary's Cathedral. At least I think it's Mary, who else would it be? On the other hand, she's got quite a long rosary around her neck -- when she prays the rosary, does she pray to herself? Anyone who grew up Catholic like I did knows that there are quite a few Hail Marys involved with that. Hm. Maybe this isn't Mary at all, but a nun. That would make more sense.

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Here's Grace Episcopal captured on Sunday, February 7th.

A Sign from God -- Okay Maybe Not

Gotta love a church with a sense of humor.

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Mother Nature has been thwarting me these last few days. It seems every time I find the time to go exploring with my camera, the weather becomes distinctly uncooperative. Today we had dark clouds and thunderstorms for most of the afternoon, so please enjoy this slightly crooked shot of Corpus Christi that I took on December 27, 2018. Better luck tomorrow I guess!

Rhymes with Grove

Lovely, stately Shove Chapel. Built in the Norman Romanesque style in 1931, I've always considered it to be one of the most beautiful churches in town. You can get a closer look at it in THIS post from August of 2014.

Statuary

This life sized statue of the Virgin Mary adorns the façade of Saint Mary's Cathedral downtown.