Thursday, January 28, 2010

Charlie Melancon and pronunciations


After dropping my daughter off at her  job this evening shortly before sunset, I went to look at the high Ohio River. While there, I happened across the towboat Charlie Melancon chugging upriver.

The Charlie Melancon is owned by Blessey Marine Services of Harahan, La. It shares a name with a congressman from the great state of Loozianna, where a sister of mine has lived (near Nawlins) for the past 35 years or so. She happened to call tonight while I was working on the photos, and she gave me the correct pronunciation of the name.

The Charlie Melancon was built by Verrett Shipyard in Plaquemine, La., and was delivered last April. Here, it is pushing for petroleum or chemical barges past the formerly industrial neighborhood of Huntington known as Highlawn.


The Ohio River at Huntington runs in a generally east-west path, giving it some nice light in morning and evening.


Here the Charlie Melancon prepares to go under my favorite bridge.


This last photo has a good angle, and I like the church in the foreground. Too bad it also has vegetation and lots of electric lines.


Clutter happens. Huntington has a lot of old electric lines that get in the way of good pictures. Too bad I can't persuade other people to spend thousands of their dollars to bury utility lines so they don't get in the way of my pictures. *Sigh*

Speaking of pronouncing state names, when I'm around other people who are natives of the state where I was born, we call it Ahia or Ohia. When we speak with outsiders, we pronounce it Ohio. My daughter and I have this running disagreement on the correct pronunciation of "Colorado," too.



Park under water


This is how Harris Riverfront Park in downtown Huntington WV looked under gray skies this morning. Everything along the river is under water, of course. In 1997, the river covered the park, and the city had to install the gates in the floodwall to prevent the river from spilling into streets.