John The Rickshaw Driver

This is John. He's a bicycle rickshaw driver by night, and by day he and his wife are personal fitness trainers. They are a husband and wife team that comes to your residence twice a week to help you train and get in shape. You can visit them on the web at Fitness With Stuef.

Raleigh's Downtown Ambassadors

Pictured above are Angel (top) and Lamont (above). They are two of Raleigh's Downtown Ambassadors. On bicycle patrol, they serve as additional eyes and ears for the RPD. While on patrol they are responsible for a particular district (Warehouse, Glenwood, etc). I admittedly do not know the full scope of their job responsibilities, but at face value it seems like an awesome job--get paid to ride around Raleigh at night and get to know everyone coming downtown.

Keeping The Peace At Moore Square Station

Officer Jack (left) and Officer Edwards (right) talking with someone at Moore Square Station who may possibly be intoxicated. He was swearing pretty loudly as I walked by, which got my attention. They ended up leaving without incident.

Obama Sets Up Shop In Raleigh

These photos were taken shortly before one a.m. on a Friday night. You have to admire the drive and passion to volunteer for something at that hour. Everyone was very friendly and nice and obviously trying to encourage me to come aboard.
The Obama Campaign office opened a week ago at 130 East Morgan Street. It was also covered in The Technician. Michelle Obama spoke just a few days ago at the Reynolds Coliseum at NCSU.

Good Friends & Friendly Lab Enjoy A Warm Night

(photograph by Steve Wilcox)
Joe Battle, Jr. owns and operates the Skyy Dogs by Joe, Inc. vending truck. You will often find Tom and his lab, Bea, visiting with Joe downtown.

Wake EMS Goes Out On A Call

No, I wasn't ambulance chasing, I just happened to be walking by as the garage doors were opening and lights were blinking. Most days the garage doors are closed at night, but every now and then they are left open when work is slow. Back in August I got a photo of a few EMS workers hanging out during such a period. This is also the second time I've captured an ambulance downtown.

Working Late on a Saturday Night

This is an attorney working late on a Saturday night in downtown Raleigh. It was 1:00 A.M. when this picture was taken.

Solitaire in the WTVD Van [UPDATED]

While walking down Glenwood Avenue, I spotted a WRAL WTVD van parked. I peeked in when noticing someone was in front of an LCD monitor. I was curious as to what software they were using for editing, and it turns out the guy was just playing a game of solitaire. Unfortunately brightly lit screens are near impossible to photograph with a dark environment, so you can't see it in the photo.

Update: The van in question does belong to WTVD, and not WRAL as earlier reported.

Hard Times At The N&O?

I have directly referenced the News & Observer at least once or twice on this blog. At that time there were a few workers out back on a smoke break. Recently I ended up walking by the same area, and bumped in to a few workers again.
An individual (who wouldn't let me take a pic of them) stated that the number of press operators working during a specific shift had been reduced from 1/2-2/3, on average. Basically, one way or another 3 people are now doing the job that recently as many as 6 or more would, and that it represented a trend. This person also referenced the buyout of Knight Ridder by The McClatchy Company on several occasions as contributing to the reduction in staff. The USA Today article says about McClatchy:

Although it owes its birth to the California Gold Rush — the chain began in 1857 with The Sacramento Bee— the company takes few risks. It focuses on small to midsize newspapers in its core markets in the Northwest or in growing communities in North and South Carolina.

And a bit more ominously:

Pruitt [CEO] says he expects to cut costs by about $60 million a year.

These quotes were references to the buyout in 2006. There really is no way to verify that this person's claims have anything to do with what's happening now, two years on.

Patrolling The Streets On A Segway

Officer Rob in front of Tir Na Nog on a Segway.

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So yesterday was the first time I've ever noticed the RPD out on Segway patrol. I've documented Officer Keen previously on this blog on bicycle patrol as well as on equestrian patrol. When asked how long the RPD has been patrolling on Segways, I was told that the department has had been for a few years now. Have I just not noticed them? Have they been out on these for a while now?

Men At Work Car Care Center

One man at work, offering clubbers and revelers a place to park for a low fee. I can say that unlike the nice town to west of Chapel Hill, parking in the downtown area is extremely easy to find without having to pay. There is a peace of mind, however, in knowing that your car will be almost 100% safe because someone is watching over it.

During normal working hours they offer such services as car washing, wash & wax, full detailing, dent removal, oil changes and inspections.

Men At Work Car Care Center
501 West Morgan St.
919-832-2425

Working Late Night at The Sheraton

Beau catching a quick cigarette break while working the late shift at The Sheraton.

Norman the Bus Driver

Norman taking a quick break on Friday in between taking folks back and forth from downtown to the fair. He's been working for CAT for 5 years.
More information on catching a bus to the fair can be found here.

Another visit by Officer Keen

Back in the early part of September I made a blog post about Officer Keen. At that time he was on bicycle patrol. Last Saturday night I bumped into him again in Nash Square while he was on equestrian patrol.

Another Horse-Drawn Carriage

I had made a post back in September about a horse-drawn carriage downtown, but the picture didn't turn out so well. Luckily for me, I got a second chance. I would really like to go out on the town in one of these.

This was taken in front of Second Empire on Saturday evening.

J & L Carriage
919.936.2586
http://www.jlcarriage.com

Late night at the sandwich shop

Making sandwiches late on Friday night. He can also be heard as host of the hippie hour on WKNC on Saturdays from 4-6.

N&O Press Operators

John, Chris, and Anthony are third shift press operators at the News & Observer. They initially didn't want me to take their picture--in fact, 3 other employees opted out and were in the shadows. They didn't want to be perceived as being slack or not working hard, even though they were on their cigarette break.

You can tell from their uniforms that they work hard.

A Horse-drawn Carriage

Officer Keen

Officer Keen on bicycle patrol.

The Greyhound Station

Not too many people loading/unloading on a Friday night.

The Warehouse District

Wake County EMS

The EMS workers driving the ambulance are in an older post waving at passersby.

Bartending At Mitch's Tavern

Nick behind the bar at Mitch's Tavern.

People, part III

These are some images from the Summer of 2006.

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Officer Perez in June of 2006

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Drew behind the bar at Left Wings Right

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EMS Workers Getting Time To Relax