499. Majestic

499. Majestic
Definition: (adj) having or showing impressive beauty or dignity
Location Placed: Colts Neck Library, Colts Neck, New Jersey
Date Placed: 5/9/13 at 7:21pm





Rounding out the library tour was the Colts Neck Library. From the outside, it looks like a well kept home from the past, majestic and proper. A lot of the libraries in my area look quite similar, so this impressive library took me by surprise. It looks like it would be a home in the south with its large staircase and horse weather vane. The inside was complete with wingback chairs and seemed like a great place to curl up and read.

498. Honeyed

498. Honeyed
Definition: (adj) having a rich sweetness of taste or smell
Location Placed: Fair Haven Library, Fair Haven, New Jersey
Date Placed: 5/9/13 at 6:48pm





It took my map-incompetent self a little longer than it ought to find the Fair Haven library. I think I passed by it 3 times before realizing there was a sign and flag right out front. Oops! I love the town of Fair Haven and how quaint the downtown area feels. I don't think I had ever driven through that section before but if the library is any indication of how lovely the town is, I think I'd be happy to live there.  

497. Encourage

497. Encourage
Definition: (v) give support, hope, or confidence to
Location Placed: Oceanic (Rumson) Library, Rumson, New Jersey
Date Placed: 5/9/13 at 6:30pm





Thursday night seems to be the night that libraries in my county are open later. So I figured I would take advantage of that and go on a Northern Monmouth County library tour. Despite living up this way for 2 years, I didn't manage to visit some of the town libraries. I decided to pop up to the Oceanic Library to check it out. It was quite posh with a fish tank and well laid out plan. I definitely could see me doing some serious reading in there!

496. Assist

496. Assist
Definition: (v) help by doing a share of the work
Location Placed: Tinton Falls Library, Tinton Falls, New Jersey
Date Placed: 5/1/13 at 6:25pm





Assistance is definitely something we've been utilizing lately. After spending the last month and a half away from the computer, we've finally bought and moved into a new house. After the storm this past fall, this move has been way overdue. It's nice to finally have our own space and enjoy being able to do homeowner-ly type tasks for a place we'll have some sweat equity (as well as cash equity!) into. Hopefully as the weather warms, the cranes will take flight a bit more often. The good weather, and time off during the summer months, makes for a lot more fun activities and adventures. This winter was a long one, but it's time to say so long.

495. Right

495. Right
Definition: (adj) morally good, justified, or acceptable
Location Placed: Tampa Bay Automobile Museum, Pinellas Park, Florida
Date Placed: 3/22/13 at 12:34pm





After trying to figure what I've not done in the area after all these years of visits, we decided to check out the Tampa Bay Auto Museum. It is the collection of one guy, started when he was in his 20s in Germany. He sounds to be quite old and has several dozen cars. I was definitely impressed. I'm not a car lover, but there were a number of really neat looking old cars. I love imagining how their owners felt driving them when they were brand new. Pretty impressive and a nice little cap to a warm and relaxing vacation!

494. Efficient

494. Efficient
Definition: (adj) achieving maximum efficiency or productivity
Location Placed: Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, Tarpon Springs, Florida
Date Placed: 3/21/13 at 2:47pm





After getting a two-for-one coupon from our Tarpon Springs tourist map, we decided to pop over to the art museum. It was a nice little modern art museum. There were a couple interesting pieces. Of course, as with me and most modern museums, there were a lot of pieces that made no sense to me. But at least it was something fun to look at!

493. Guarantee

493. Guarantee
Definition: (n) a formal promise or assurance
Location Placed: Spongeorama Museum, Tarpon Springs, Florida
Date Placed: 3/21/13 at 1:50pm





Unfortunately, we didn't get to spend much time at the Sponge Docks. It was a bit more touristy and overcrowded than we thought. The free sponge museum and movie were underwhelming so we just decided to spend a bit more time elsewhere. So we took a drive down the coast a bit to enjoy the sunshine from one of the island causeways. Definitely tried to get my fill of nice, warm weather before heading home!

492. Integrity

492. Integrity
Definition: (n) having strong morals and/or principles
Location Placed: Brooker Creek Preserve, Tarpon Springs, Florida
Date Placed: 3/21/13 at 11:27am





We decided to take a ride to Tarpon Springs as it's been a while since I've been up there. I had never been to the preserve, so I picked that as a nice spot to take a walk prior to doing some more touristy things. They had a lovely environmental center with lots of interesting information and some pretty snazzy wooden rockers. The trails are well labeled and not too difficult. We spent a good hour or so there, but you could spend a lot more time. Although we didn't see much floral, the fauna was definitely quite impressive. It certainly helps that we were able to get a good shot of a 'Gator (from far away, of course!)

491. Brawny

491. Brawny
Definition: (adj) physically strong, muscular
Location Placed: Largo Public Library, Largo, Florida
Date Placed: 3/20/13 at 11:19am





While down visiting, we popped into the library to return a few things and so I could check it out. It's so much larger than any of my libraries at home! I guess the people of Pinellas County love their reading. Of course I don't blame them. It seems like they have pretty much anything I could think of. I do believe it will keep local residents quite busy with it!

490. Dynamic

490. Dynamic
Definition: (n) a force that stimulates change or progress
Location Placed: Ocean Historical Museum, Ocean Township, New Jersey
Date Placed: 3/3/13 at 2:34pm





My second stop of the day was the Ocean Historical Museum, which turned out to be equally as awesome. There were several interesting exhibits set up including one on World War II soldiers from the area. They also had a lot of information about what the park I used to walk in often was prior to being a park. Apparently it was a test site for communication intelligence items. The first sighting of Sputnik occurred at the site! I think my favorite thing was the exhibit depicting the areas of Ocean and what they were back in the day. I certainly wish I could've visited some of these attractions in their haydays!

489. Genius

489. Genius
Definition: (n) exceptional intellectual or creative power
Location Placed: Eatontown Historical Museum, Eatontown, New Jersey
Date Placed: 3/3/13 at 1:41pm





With a little bit of down time this afternoon, I decided to pop out to a couple places I've been meaning to hit up for ages. The Eatontown Historical Museum is a lovely home built in the 1700's filled with artifacts donated primarily from people in Eatontown. I was pleasantly surprised to find it filled with so many awesome things. The woman that showed me around with super nice and informative. I'd certainly recommend someone interested in the history of the area to check it out if they have time.

488. Bonus

488. Bonus
Definition: (n) a payment or gift added to what is usual or expected
Location Placed: Silverball Museum II, Asbury Park, New Jersey
Date Placed: 3/1/13 at 9:29pm
Status: FOUND!





Wow! I haven't been getting out much lately. I've definitely been a winter hermit. But the night out was definitely a bonus! The Silverball Museum, with working pinball machines, is somewhere I had been wanting to visit for a while. I've always had a fond spot in my heart for pinball, so it was really cool to play some of the older machines that I had never even seen before. The oldest machine that I played was 1950. For a pinball machine to be as well kept and in working order as that at 60+ years old is pretty impressive. Next time we have out of town guests, I know where we'll be stopping!

EDIT:// This crane was found on 3/4/13 by Tony who says he is going to make sure it is replaced up in Rhode Island!

487. Auspicious

487. Auspicious
Definition: (adj) conductive to success; favorable
Location Placed: Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport - Terminal 4, Phoenix, Arizona
Date Placed: 12/24/12 at 3:03pm





I think this has to be, hands down, the nicest airport terminal I have ever been in. I've been to Phoenix a few times, but have always flown into Terminal 2. Terminal 2 is better than most airport terminals. However I did not know what I was missing until I flew into Terminal 4. I kid you not, this terminal was nicer than my local mall. It was classy, had tons of awesome shops and even had gorgeous little sitting areas. I think I might be sticking to flights that bring me through Terminal 4 from now on! I was feeling a little sluggish from my lunch at the Cornish Pasty Company a short distance away. (If you get a chance to eat there, take it. Definitely one of the best pasty places I've ever been to, including the ones in England!)

486. Yippee

486. Yippee
Definition: (exclamation) expressing wild excitement or delight
Location Placed: Thee Pitts Again, Glendale, Arizona
Date Placed: 12/23/12 at 12:17pm





If you've not see an old-time diner, then you are certainly missing out. Thee Pitts Again is one of the great BBQ joints in the greater Phoenix area (according to Guy Fieri on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives). We figured we would pop over and get a good bite to eat. And a good bite we got! Fall off the bone ribs, delicious pulled pork sandwiches, crispy beer battered fries, and a hunk of golden cornbread. While the decor was a bit pig-heavy, the food definitely passed muster. I think yippee is definitely a fitting crane for this location.

485. Propitious

485. Propitious
Definition: (adj) giving or indicating a good chance of success; favorable
Location Placed: Phoenix Zoo, Phoenix, Arizona
Date Placed: 12/22/12 at 7:22pm





Sadly this year I was unable to use my Christmas cranes that I had made last year due to unforeseeable circumstances that kept me from a.) traveling b.) placing cranes and c.) living in my home. Hurricane Sandy (unfortunate coincidence of a name, really) tackled New Jersey straight on and flooded my area, including my home. We are back to living in it, albeit possessing far less than we started off with. However, we are trying to put it all behind us now, and I look forward to placing more cranes from here on out.

We hopped down to the Phoenix Zoo for the ZooLights attraction. It was quite cool! While there were no animals harmed (or lit!) in the making of this attraction, there were a lot of metal animal shapes that were lit up. If you're in the area and looking for an awesome attraction for adults and children alike, this is a lot of fun. You might even catch a glimpse of an animal or two! (In our case, we caught the tail end of a zebra, literally!)

484. Agog

484. Agog
Definition: (adj) very eager or curious to hear or see something
Location Placed: The Pier, St. Petersburg, Florida
Date Placed: 10/13/12 at 1:58pm





There is just something about the word agog that makes me giggle. Perhaps it's the two g's. Or just how awkward the word sounds when it's said aloud. Agog. But it's also nice when you see what it means, very curious or eager. Who doesn't like those sentiments? I'm all agog whenever I go on vacation and poke around places I've not been before. That's what vacation is all about, right?

Where has been your favorite place(s) to travel to?

483. Docile

483. Docile
Definition: (adj) obedient, tame
Location Placed: Dale Chihuly Glass Collection, St. Petersburg, Florida
Date Placed: 10/13/12 at 1:09pm





Although the museum was a bit small, the pieces that were displayed were quite lovely! I have had a think for glass pieces ever since my Grandma showed me the one she helped make many years ago. I think it's the whole seeing something come from nothing, or in this case, something come from a ball of molten glass. If I'm ever in a city with another glass collection, you best believe I'll stop by.

482. Sensuous

482. Sensuous 
Definition: (adj) relating to or affected the senses rather than intellect
Location Placed: Museum of Fine Art, St. Petersburg, Florida
Date Placed: 10/13/12 at 12:11pm

 


What a wonderful museum! They had a number of pieces that were thousands of years old. I was no only impressed by the age of the pieces, but the quality of them. They looked like they were pretty new to me. I think my favorite though were the back rooms that were tucked away from the main parts of the museum that held the specialized exhibits like the etched glass pieces and the super old bits. Definitely worth a poke around.

481. Intriguing

481. Intriguing
Definition: (v) arouse curiosity or interesting
Location Placed: Plant Summer House, Heritage Village, Largo, Florida
Date Placed: 10/12/12 at 2:56pm



The Plant Summer House was one of the historic homes in the area that was moved to the park. They had outfitted it with furniture and knick knacks of the time. One of the most interesting things I found, was the outside window coverings. We were told that they are some sort of hurricane screens. It looks like it's just mesh covering the windows. There are bits of iron or steel woven in with the mesh in order to protect windows from projectiles. Coming from an area that is pretty low on the hurricane hit list, I didn't even know these sorts of things existed! Makes me wonder what sorts of other inventions exist elsewhere that I've never come across.

480. Orderly

480. Orderly
Definition: (adj) neatly and methodically arranged
Location Placed: Heritage Village Church, Largo, Florida
Time Placed: 10/12/12 at 2:49pm





An overabundance of work and homework, keeps a crane placer from going fun places. But I was able to steal a long weekend away down in Florida. It was an awesome jaunt with wonderful weather. We headed over to the Heritage Village, which I've not been to for years. I didn't even know it, but I ended up missing nearly two thirds of the park! The church was one of those places.  It even had a working church bell! I imagine it would be an awesome place to check out during the holiday season when they have dancers and it's strung up really pretty with lights.

479. Approachable

479. Approachable
Definition: (adj) friendly and easy to talk to
Location Placed: Chelsea Market, New York City, New York
Date Placed: 8/26/12 at 9:38am





Our morning activity was to have a wonderful brunch at the High Line Park. We chopped up a wonderful fruit salad the night before and popped over to Chelsea Market to pick up a couple of croissants before we sat down for our brunch. It was an absolutely gorgeous morning, cool but the sun was poking out. Not to mention the park was quite wonderful.

For those who don't know, High Line Park is a park that was made from the old abandoned train track three stories above ground. It spans south from 30th St. south for about 1.75 miles. There are a bunch of little seating areas along it as well as art installments. The best thing about it is the wonderful plants and trees that are planted along it. Definitely things I wouldn't think would be found in the city. I'd certainly recommend it (and Chelsea Market) on a late summer or early fall morning!

478. Finesse

478. Finesse 
Definition: (v) do in a subtle and delicate manner
Location Placed: The Cloisters Museum, New York City, New York
Date Placed: 8/25/12 at 2:45pm
Status: FOUND!





I headed up to the city for a lovely weekend trip to visit a friend. Neither of us had been to The Cloisters, which is a museum that is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It's a pretty cool looking old building filled with a bunch of religious art. While I'm not very religious, I definitely appreciated the architecture and views quite a bit.

Not to mention I got an email the following day saying that this crane was found! "I found crane 478 yesterday at the Cloisters Museum & Garden. I picked it up then went to your website. I'm moving to the UK in about a week, would you like me to place the crane there?" So it looks like Finesse is going to be taking a trip across the pond and taking flight to the U.K. Hopefully it, and the finder, have a good trip!

477. Delicate

477. Delicate
Definition: (adj) fine in texture, quality, or construction; dainty
Location Placed: Connecticut Rest Stop, Fairfield, Connecticut
Date Placed: 8/4/12 at 3:45pm





Although it was a little closer to home than previous trips, it was a lot of fun and jam packed with tons of different activities. I like saying I was able to see everything I wanted to see in a place or city so that this way I can set my sights on a new location for the next time. In the words of the great Tom Petty, "After all it was a great big world, with lots of places to run to." And that is just what I plan to do.

476. Flattery

476. Flattery
Definition: (n) the act of trying to please with complimentary remarks or attention
Location Placed: Beinecke Rare Books Library, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
Date Placed: 8/4/12 at 2:35pm





The Beinecke Library just looks like a square-shaped interesting piece of architecture from the outside. It's made of a specific type of marble that looks quite ordinary from the outside, but from the inside it is amazing! As you can see from the picture, light is filtered through some of the bits of the marble, giving it a warm glow on the inside. This helps to give the building a little bit of light and to not ruin the rare texts and manuscripts in the several story library. I have never seen anything like this and was just in awe during that whole portion of the tour. I think the tour is worth it just to see this alone in my opinion.

475. Noble

475. Noble
Definition: (adj) having or showing fine personal qualities or high moral principles or ideals
Location Placed: Yale University Sterling Memorial Library, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
Date Placed: 8/4/12 at 2:20pm





So on the tour, we came to the University's largest library. It actually looks like a church. Apparently the architect really wanted to build a church and approached the school to see if they would agree. But since Yale is non-denominational, they said they didn't need a church and were pretty good with everything they had. So the architect decided he still really wanted to build a church structure but perhaps they could make it into a library, so that's what they did! The library apparently goes under ground and the steeple has something like 9 stories of books in it. It is quite pretty and a bit disorienting!