Steel Beasts

The steel beasts continue to feast upon the remains of the wetlands next to the Burger Kind on University. They lift huge steel mouth fulls of trucked-in rust colored soil, moving it around according to some higher plan.

Today's activity caught my attention more by smell than anything else. As I stepped out of my car this morning I was drawn to the pit by the rancid smell of decaying vegetation and the darker richer soil that was left of the small wetlands that once covered this area. Temperatures are rising into the lower 90s in Orlando adding energy to the organic stew at the bottom of the pit and speeding up the breakdown of the material and the release of hydrogen sulfide or "rotten egg" smell.

On the way home I drive by the outskirts of Universal Studios via the exit off of I-4 onto Hollywood Way. I pass by a series of fenced lots that act as a type of buffer between Universal proper and I-4. It would appear that Universal is rebuilding a part of the property, ripping up older concrete and dropping it off on one of the plots to be broken down and hauled somewhere else. Today they'd brought in a crushing machine similar to Leveler Jr, but this one for grinding up concrete. I found it humorous that Universal would put up a green cover to hide the activities, yet leave large equipment on the property along with piles of broken concrete, which could clearly be seen above the fence. The also left the gate standing open. So, curious, and with my trusty E-3, I pulled off and walked a short distance into the area to look around.

Just inside the fence rested these two demolition cranes. Pece of Mind is an Orlando demolition company. There wasn't a soul around while I was there, but then, it's not like I would steal one of these bad boys. How would I get it out of there, tow it behind my Prius? And trying to keep it out front of my house would draw the unwanted attention of the homeowner's association, although I bet I could really do some serious intimidation with one of these if I only know how to operate it. Oh well, maybe in some other lifetime.

There's been a boom in heavy construction over the last six to nine months, from highway construction to major student quarters near UCF to operations like this and elsewhere along the routes I commute. This is a far cry from the dying and dead businesses of 2008 and 2009, with the growing collection of empty businesses and buildings at that time.

Nothing ever seems to be ideal in this world. Either we're in the middle of destructive economic boom or a major economic bust.

Technical

I'm back in a phase of using the E-3 again. There's an almost visceral satisfaction in using the E-3 with the 12-60mm zoom that neither the E-1 nor E-P2 can quite pull off for me. Focus is nearly instantaneous with this lens. The E-3 at base ISO 100 in good daylight and with good exposure practice produces excellent photographs. It's not nearly as silent as the E-1, but it can rip off a set of multiple exposures at a rate the E-1 can't touch. It's the camera I reach for when I need to react quickly in the face of the unexpected. All post processing in Lightroom 4.