PLAY GLORIA!!

A sea of blue and gold, as far as the eye can see... 

The only thing more incredible than the St. Louis Blues is YOU, St. Louis! St. Louis PROUD.. We got the cup!

💛💙🏆💙💛
#PlayGloria

That's a winner at the Enterprise Center... Let's Go Blues!

Look closely and you will catch the Nenonen Boys singing "Gloria" at the watch party! Ha ha.

Peek from last night: Now you see it, now you don’t!

Downtown St. Louis was cloaked in such a dense blanket o’ fog...

...it left a mere shadow of the spectacular Gateway Arch.❤️

Overcast Scene Downtown

Hello, Tuesday...

...Good morning, St. Louis! ❤️ Storm skies as the Gateway Arch peeks over the shoulder of the Old Cathedral (aka the 1st cathedral west of the Mississippi, circa 1834).

An ode to the tail-end of Senior year and the city we love...

I started this blog almost 10 years ago, after several years of personal blogging. I have always enjoyed the written word and what a terrific creative outlet and labor of love this blog has become!  While obviously the main trajectory is my business here on CDN and the City, I attempt to stay authentically me at all times and share with you the things that I encounter, enjoy, and love in gorgeous St. Louis, my family included.

First day of school posts, last day of school posts... there are a lot of them if you scroll back in my archives.  This one is a tad special, however.

My oldest is finishing up the tail-end of his Senior year and I wanted one final mini photo shoot to celebrate this major life transition as much as the city that our family loves and calls home.

I stumbled upon Julia (Jewels) Vrabel's work on Instagram via the #StLouisGram hashtag and was drawn to her point of view.  She has an artistic aesthetic that equally highlights the subject and the background.  I wanted the beautiful grit of the city.

My son admittedly does NOT enjoy getting his photo taken so a lengthy "posey model" photo shoot wouldn't do.  Jewels did an incredible job of making him feel comfortable.  The result?  His personality and the urban beauty of our Riverfront shine through in harmony.  Her hour Senior mini-session provided us with two dozen terrific shots   She captured everything that I love about my boy and our gorgeous city as graduation approaches.

A teeny tiny peek at the fun...
Note: these are not the hi-def version of these photos, only a screenshot, so as not to overwhelm my server.

Thank you for sharing your talent with us, Jewels, and for allowing my youngest to photobomb a few!

You can take the boy out of St. Louis, but you can't take the St. Louis out of the boy. ♥

  

Do you want to hire Jewels or see more of her work?  Visit Jewels Photography on FB HERE!

St. Louis Ghost Story: the house that inspired "The Exorcist".

Who doesn't adore a handsome traditional two-story brick home...

Built in 1942, this lovely 3 bedroom, 3 bath property boasts hardwood floors, a wood-burning fireplace, almost 1,700 sqft, and an interesting reputation...

YIKES!!  Happy Halloween week, St. Louis.  Yes, the 1973 cult classic movie "The Exorcist" is rumored to be a St. Louis real life ghost story.

In real estate, a "stigmatized property" is one that buyers shun for reasons that are unrelated to its physical condition or features, most often related to death, murder, suicide, serious illness, or belief that a house is haunted.  Some of the most notorious?

The "Amityville Horror" house...

Jon Benet Ramsey's house...

Jeffrey Dahmer's house...

And yes, one of the most stigmatized properties on the planet...

"The Exorcist" house, located less than 15 minutes from the St. Louis Arch, is nestled in a quiet Bel-Nor neighborhood near the campus of UMSL.

Even though the current Homeowner has encouraged the property's wicked reputation by willingly hosting numerous spooky television shows over recent years like "The Ghost Hunters"  and "Exorcism: LIVE", I won't post the address out of respect to their privacy. That being said, the property is the backdrop of "selfies" from the around the world as spook-seekers have hunted down the address and ventured to this unassuming house to document their visit.

While the movie itself contradicts and embellishes much of the detailed 26 page diary accounts of a St. Louis priest who participated in the actual exorcism itself, most of the rumored locations have been verified by local historians.  THIS interesting NPR article gives the historical accounts of this real life St. Louis ghost story.

So the question is, locals:  would you be interested in attending a Open House or submitting an offer if this one were to hit the market again?  The last sale was in 2005.

Fair St. Louis 2015 Concert Lineup on Art Hill

Fair St. Louis will once again be in Forest Park this year, as the Arch Grounds construction continues.  The 2015 4th of July weekend concert lineup on Art Hill was announced yesterday, and it ROCKS...

Mark your calenders St. Louis!  Fair St. Louis is not only free, but family-friendly.  NOTE: The nightly concerts will be followed by fireworks.

FOR MORE INFO:

Web: http://fairsaintlouis.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FairSaintLouis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/fairsaintlouis

Just For Fun: A Spring Day in the City Garden

Link Love: St. Louis Missouri- History, Landmarks, & Vintage photos Page

St. Louis lovers and history buffs- I have a new obsession that I must share! If you are on Facebook and you haven't yet, please join this Facebook group for an incredible peek at our city's past, one interesting photo submission and discussion at a time. Utterly fantastic! 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Vintage.stl/

You can find me on Facebook HERE. Let's connect!

The St. Louis City Garden Winter Wonderland At Night

Last night, we were Downtown for dinner at Peacemaker and a theater event at the Peabody Opera House. Afterwards, we enjoyed a late-night stroll through the City Garden to take in the holiday scene.  If you have not yet done this locals, please do!  Terrific.  A peek at the whimsical fun...

The Arch Grounds project is underway!!

I was downtown this AM, and saw the 2015 "Park Over The Highway" project in progress by CityArchRiver...

Such an awesome improvement to the Riverfront & Arch grounds it will be! Trading dangerous traffic for sprawling green. WIN.  I had to share!

Just for Fun: Funny photos of the St. Louis Arch - Part 2

As I still get a little chuckle from my last "Funny Photos With The St. Louis Arch" post, more Google results of our beloved landmark for you viewing pleasure...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bonus photo...

 
Mississippi River barge for lunch?  People are strange.  Too fun!