Leaves of Color

At the Kiwanis Plant Sale, we also made another purchase.


Fairway Ruby

Coleus is noted for its spectacular leaf hues. This particular variation, Fairway Ruby, is no exception.


A Ruby in the Light

A Bit of the Desert

Dotting a park by the side of the road, a menagerie of colors finally enticed me and Sandra after a dinner out a few weeks ago. We stopped and studied the offerings at the plant sale hosted by the Kiwanis Club. They had excellent assortment of flowering plants, but there was more than just pretty flowers.

One collection was a six pack of cacti, which we decided to take home.


A Prickly Assortment

Shortly after purchase, we caught a pleasant surprise on one of the cacti.


Flowering

A Closeup

In fact, it actually flowered in two spots. you can actually see the buds on the first image. The most amazing thing about this bloom was that it would open during the day, but then at night...


Resting in the Evening

...it would close. For several days, it did this, open during the day and close in the evening. It was a short-lived bloom, but incredible nonetheless.

Images of Our Loud Neighbors

Remaining on Brick

On Grass

A couple of weeks ago, the cicada nymphs were rising and making their transformation. Wherever there was a spot to cling to, they clung: side of the house, branches, even grass.

And in that grass, they were now adult cicadas.


Among the Blades of Grass

Cicadas, cicadas, cicadas...


By the Dozen

Looking at One

And Closer

Yes, cicadas.

About the Music

Last night, Sandra and I caught the weekly Music City Roots at the Loveless Barn. I'm not sure if Music City Roots is the best-kept secret in Nashville, but it does bring an eclectic, though heavily country-influenced, blend of music, at a very reasonable price. Last night's $10 performance showcased 5 acts: Larry Cordle with Randy Kohrs, Iodine, The Farewell Drifters, Jo-El Sonnier, and Buddy Greene.

One treat was The Farewell Drifters, who could be described as a "progressive bluegrass/acoustic band" and that might be true particularly if you toss in a heavy dose of Irish roots with a nod to old 50s style vocals backed by 2 guitars, mandolin, upright bass, and fiddle. More simply put Wow!. It's been a while that I could say about a band.

Another treat to the night was Buddy Greene, an amazing harmonica player. In his hands and mouth, the harmonica is an instrument, not just an emotional accent to the music. Listening to him, you wonder what he can't play on the mouth harp.

And to cap off the night, all the performers came on stage for a final jam. This was definitely about the music. Music City Roots has a website, which lots of information including performance recordings. Here is a link to last night's show, May 25th at Music City Roots. It's the whole show, but you can move around to the artists you like the most.

The recordings are hosted by Livestream and I found this clip from the day before,
The Farewell Drifters Playing at one of the Music City Roots sponsors, Whole Foods.

You can also find out more about The Farewell Drifters by checking out their website. They are hitting the East Coast for a few upcoming shows and then heading back to Nashville on June 16th. They also have a new upcoming album release, echo boom, which is home to the songs we heard last night.

Defintely some musical treats.

On the Ice

A few years, a couple of young American skaters, Meryl Davis and Charlie White, caught my attention in an ice dancing competition, and they held my attention.

An Indian Folk Dance rendition at the 2009 Grand Prix Final on YouTube
Dance to Phantom of the Opera at 2010 U.S. Nationals on YouTube

They didn't simply perform some exercises while music played, instead they created a space for art to reside: no formula, no simple maneuvers, all inspiration and risk and life. No one else was like them. At the end of the Phantom dance, I could see that Charlie White had pushed everything to the edge as he appeared exhausted.

The pair won a silver medal at 2010 Winter Olympics. I couldn't tell who won the gold, but they were from Canada and their perfromance was exacting and pretty and rather dull. I won't say that Davis and White were robbed, but it was clear that what I want to see in a performance, that true moment of creative expression, was not the criteria by which the judges judged.

This year, the two won the gold at the 2011 World Championships. It was a nice performance. Perhaps that's why they won. They had stepped back a bit from the edge of creative expression and performed for the judges.

Tango from the 2011 World Championship on YouTube

I'll still remember the older performances. Their "Phantom" is what inspired me to write this post.

Thinking of Christmas

The scene along 111th Street in Oak Lawn amazed me.


A Roadside Tree

A few weeks before Christmas, on a strip on land between the frontage and main road, the evergreens were lit with colors. Even big boxes wrapped for the festive season found their spot under the trees.

You can say it's just a holiday.

Lining the Holiday

But you can also say wow! when people craft a scene that you don't see every day.

Back Home

Back in February, Sandra and I had the opportunity, our first since the move, to visit Cleveland. It had been 9 months, so being home was special for Sandra since she had a chance to see her parents. Here are some pictures from the trip:


Father and Daughter
Mother and Daughter
Sandra with an Old Friend

The last photo is Sandra holding Pennywise, which she won years ago at a carnival. Throughout all her travels, the bear jester has been waiting at her parent's house. Whenever she returns home, she stops, gives him a looksie and sometimes even a hug.

Heard and Seen

I remember a few years back in Chicago the cicada emergence. I remember driving through the forest preserves with the windows closed and still being able to hear them. Though I didn't really see them often until they started dropping out of the trees after mating.

This cycle is different in middle Tennessee. Here I see them during the day, a few newly emerging, transformed from their nymph state, others dark and red-eyed with fully inflated wings. I see them on parking lots, in the grass. I also see many more of the husks left behind after their transformation. These are a visible presence.

Yet some things still remain the same from one brood on a 17 year cycle to another brood on a 13 year cycle. Right now, 4:51 PM, I sit typing at my computer. It's warm outside, so the windows are closed and the central air is running, and even now in this place, I can hear the sounds of the cicadas outside in the trees.

Hours

12:26 AM
9:21 AM
8:37 PM

For Easter, Sandra bought lilies to decorate the kitchen table. The plant had several buds that had not opened. The one above didn't open until 3 days after Easter.

By this time, the flowers that had already opened were dripping with nectar. I'm sure the bumblebees which flocked around the bush outside a while back would have loved to find this sweet destination.


Holding On


And four days later, another straggler began to open.

Before Shopping: 11:43 AM
After Shopping: 2:38 PM

Well, one week later, but during a span of only 3 hours, one more flower went from bud to bloom.

A Day of Jazz

Yesterday, Sandra and I drove to Murfreesboro. This was our first visit to the fast-growing city that is the geographical center of Tennessee. The attraction was the 15th annual Jazz festival. While the midday began with clouds and a little rain leading to doubts about listening to jazz outside, the weather cleared and turned into a beautiful day to sit and soak in the atmosphere.

Unlike many cities which have slipped entirely into a super strip mall which lines the municipal edge, Murfreesboro has an active downtown retail area. Yes, Murfreesboro has a mega strip located off the interstate exit, but it also has eclectic blend of shopping, restaurants, and more in the square which surrounds the central courthouse.

It's place that we'll likely come back to visit. The first Fridays in the summer, particularly, might bring us back, since the square is a site of music night. There's nothing quite like sitting under the stars on a nice evening listening to good music.

If you want to check out more about the city, including more information about events, you can visit the downtown Murfreesboro's web site.

Mystery of Night

Whether it's a March moon...



March Moon

...or the shape of a branch before that moon, ...



New Leaves at Night

...the night becomes the canvas for my mind. Stop. Soak in the outline and the hues. Relate.

Mystery of Flame

Light Within

Mid-March. The weather turns nice enough to grill outside. So we do. I pile the charcoal in a cone and light the starter. It's near dusk, and for a reason I don't entirely understand, I view the scene, the flame flickering within the stack of coals, and I think yes, yes, I have to capture this.



The Flame

And I don't think the camera captures the real moment, that moment is when I realize the fire and coals, the space, the boundaries, and the link. The image will never be any of that, but perhaps it sparks its own.

Trees in Bloom

In the middle of winter, you would never expected much of the old, half-cut tree standing in the front lawn. But then the warmer weather comes and a month ago signs began to show.



Flowering the Branches

The tree was very much alive. Amazing.

The little creek that runs along the side of the property is lined with trees and bushes. These too should showed signs of life.



Leaves and White Petals


Looking Closer

Even the vines which coil around the branches join the the passage of Spring.



Color Among the Branches


Light, Shadow, and Blooms

Keep in mind, you can click on the images for another view. Most of the images on the blog have larger versions where you can see more detail.

A Springy Lawn

By the beginning of April, the lawn had become a menagerie of plants.



Delicate Little Blooms


Among the Blades of Grass


Closing on the Shade of Purple

A Taste of Pollen

Spring comes sooner in Tennessee than in the northern states. Even by the end of March, things are blooming.


Little Flowers on the Bush

And the scene just outside our door is buzzing.



In Flight

During the daylight hours, dozens of bumblebees found the bush, outside our side door, most delectable.



A One


A Two


A Three

Bumblebee, bumblebee, bumblebee!

A Visitor to the Deck

I didn't find the old USB connection for the camera, but while shopping today, I stopped at Best Buy and bought a new one, so new photos are the way...

First is this visitor to our back deck six weeks ago:



Chipmunk