14 Comments
Sep 12Liked by Rob Stephenson

Abu Talib doesn’t look a day over 50! Eat your greens kids!

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Or better yet, spend several hours a day working in your garden!

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Sep 12Liked by Rob Stephenson

Wow this issue about Highbridge truly had everything - poor water quality, Poe mention, free pancakes, misspelled signage, tourist stairs, and a "where's Abu Talib". Absolute :chefs-kiss:

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Thanks Eden! So.many.tangets.

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Sep 13Liked by Rob Stephenson

Those photos of the roman aqueducts are UNREAL. Wow. Thank you for sharing those. This whole issue is fascinating, and I appreciate you doing the work to bring it to us.

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Thanks Justin! Joel’s work is a constant inspiration

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Blondin and Leslie had balls! It's hard enough for me to picture anyone doing a tightrope walk over any body of water or building, but to be COOKING FOOD on it...

(P.S. I hope the locals don't mind if I borrow the name "Dangerville"- it's a great name for a community that is entirely settled by villains, right up there with Crookston and Thief River Falls in Minnesota).

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Yeah, they were completely insane. In Leslie's case literally.

think the statute of limitations on Dangerville ran out a long time ago, it's yours.

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Sep 12Liked by Rob Stephenson

Great issue but are you aware that some people claim that the Edgar Allan Poe story is false. Have you investigated that?

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Why would I let research get in the way of a good story? Seriously though, I had read that there was some doubt about Poe's High Bridge wanderings, mostly attributed to the fact that it was only completed a few months before his death. Still, none other than his ex fiancé, Sarah Helen Whitman, said Poe walked on the aqueduct path "at all times of day and night, often pacing the then solitary pathway for hours without meeting another human being." I imagine the lack of crowds could be attributed to the fact that it wasn't an official walkway yet. Or it could be made up, who knows? At least the pancake tightrope story is true.

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Great issue! Loved the audio too, that last bit especially.

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Thanks! I figured you might be an AratheJay fan.

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From Croton to Rome ... nice photos by Joel Sternfeld !

Niagra -> Niagara

dare devils -> daredevils

High Bridge -> Highbridge

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An incredible post, Rob. Everything from your photos (and of course Joel's) to the stories you weave together is just wonderful. I love that bridge! I need to come down to the city and do some long exposure photographs of the trains running below it...

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