Gazebo in the Snow

The past few days' snowy weather made for some excellent winter photography conditions on campus. We got plenty of snow on Wednesday, after just a bit of snow on Tuesday. And so Thursday morning, the ground was covered in white. We didn't get a chance to clear our drive way at home on Wednesday night, so Thursday morning found me riding the bus again. Which meant - you guessed  it - the bus plopped me down on campus in the midst of a winter wonderland.

The very first thing that happened was that I discovered a new photo op: the lovely little patio with red tables and chairs outside Cafe Laura, not far from the Nittany Lion Inn. It was covered in snow broken only by rabbit tracks and squirrel tracks. Its lights shone out golden in the dark of a January morning and drew me in. I will plan to go back again soon to work on some shots I found there.

I also went for some of my favorite typical campus scenes: the snow-lined pathways down the mall below the Libraries bordered by old-fashioned lamp posts, the view through the snow-covered bell displayed near Old Main, a wintry triptych at West Halls, the alumni gardens wrapped in a robe of winter white, the duck pond covered in snow. 

As I strolled through the alumni gardens, I saw tiny lights shining out from the little gazebo by the duck pond. They looked like fireflies, actually, and inside my heart, a tiny warm thought of summer leaped to its feet and began dancing the boogaloo. It turns out that it wasn't fireflies, of course, but a veil of Christmas lights strung from the gazebo. So I walked all around the gazebo, trying to "see" it in as many ways, and from as many angles, as possible.

I picked this photo to share because I enjoy the way the gazebo frames the scene. In the near distance is the snow-covered duck pond. A bit further away are the red brick walls of one of the engineering buildings. An old-fashioned lamp post, a favorite tree, some red bushes, and the little bridge complete the scene. All favorite things, framed within the borders of the little white gazebo in the snow.

The song for this scene . . . I often include here songs that are my favorites, but I admit that this is one I've just stumbled across recently. The video is one of the most unusual and creative I've seen, a bit like claymation perhaps. Have a look and a listen, as an indie folk band from Seattle with the cool name of Fleet Foxes performs the song Winter White Hymnal. (Pentatonix has also covered this tune, so here is a link to their version as well.)