Saturday, April 23, 2016

THIRTY DAY CHALLENGE--Day Twenty-Three

A photo a day for 30 days

The Terrible Thing About Cindy

The terrible thing about Cindy
Is she packs a powerful punch.
I learned this yesterday at school
When I tried to take her lunch.

 I had only meant to tease her,
To make her squeal and twist.

The last thing I expected
Was her calculated fist.

 She socked me in the stomach;
She’s more than slightly deft.
And sent me stumbling to my knees
As she snatched her lunch and left.

 After that I was quite sorry
I had tussled with a pro –
I wish my friends had told me

 That she practiced tae kwon do.

~ Barbara Vance


Friday, April 22, 2016

THIRTY DAY CHALLENGE--Day Twenty-Two

Extreme Spring Cleanup

 Last Thursday, April 14, there was an apartment building standing at the corner of Second South and First West across from the university stadium.

 The view toward Porter Park from that corner looked like this.

 At the end of that block stood four homes.  The whole block had been bought up by a developer. The time had come for some spring cleaning.

 By Wednesday, April 20, the apartment was a heap of rubble.

 Only two of the houses were still standing.  The shade tree looked a little battered but was hanging in there.

 Today this is the view toward the university stadium.  The buildings are coming down to make way for more student housing.  There will probably also be some shops on the street level.

The homes are gone; nothing but rubble.  But the shade tree has put on some new leaves. 

 DH said it looked like someone dropped a bomb on our fair city.  I guess the bomb went off when our two-year college was changed to a four-year university in June of 2000.  For good and ill, the town has been on building steroids ever since. At the same time this is happening the girls' dorms are coming down for more parking space.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just down the street from us a four-story building is being added to an assisted living complex.

 And around the corner from our home the last of three houses is being carted off to a new location to make way for something else.  At least these buildings weren’t smashed into smithereens.   We’ve endured enough backhoe mayhem over the past months with the repositioning of the canal across the street.

“There are things in life we don’t want to happen, but have to accept; things we don’t want to know, but have to learn, and people we can’t live without, but have to let go.—Nancy Stephan, The Truth About Butterflies


R.I.P Purple Prince

Thursday, April 21, 2016

THIRTY DAY CHALLENGE--Day Twenty-One

A photo a day for thirty days

The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the lawnmower is heard in our land. 
Song of Solomon 2:12--edited  ;-)

It was also a great day for a bicycle ride.  
View of our valley from the overpass.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bicycle races are coming your way
So forget all your duties oh yeah!
Fat bottomed girls they'll be riding today
So look out for those beauties oh yeah!
Queen

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

THIRTY DAY CHALLENGE--Day Twenty

A photo a day for thirty days


TREE HOUSE

A tree house,
A free house,
A secret you and me house,
A high up in the leafy branches
Cozy as can be house.

A street house,
A neat house.
Be sure and wipe your feet house
Is not my kind of house at all--
Let’s go live in a tree house.

Shel Silverstein


Postscript: This is one of Treehouse Master's creations.
And it has a bathroom.



Tuesday, April 19, 2016

THIRTY DAY CHALLENGE--Day Nineteen

A photo a day for thirty days

Everything in the universe has rhythm.

.
Everything dances.

Maya Angelou

Monday, April 18, 2016

THIRTY DAY CHALLENGE--Day Eighteen

A photo a day for 30 days

 The town of Herbert once included several houses, a school and a store.

  This empty building, a few foundations and a fireplace are all that remain.  Miles of wheat fields surround the place in every direction.

 Rusted out home appliances and farm equipment litter the area.

 Kick up the dirt and find shards of glass from bottles and china plates.


Only small rodents, birds and maybe a snake or two call this place home now.  Only the lonely, constant wind moves through the rooms.  When the railroad and the highway took traffic elsewhere, the need for store and school disappeared along with the homesteaders.


Sunday, April 17, 2016

THIRTY DAY CHALLENGE--Day Seventeen

A photo a day for 30 days

Enter This Deserted House

But please walk softly as you do.
Frogs dwell here and crickets too.

Ain't no ceiling, only blue.
Birds dwell here and sunbeams too.

 Floors are flowers - take a few
Ferns grow here and daisies too.

 Whoosh, swoosh - too-whit, too-woo
Bats dwell here and hoot owls too.

 Ha-ha-ha, hee-hee, hoo-hoooo,
Gnomes dwell here and goblins too.

And my child, I thought you knew
I dwell here... and so do you.

Shel Silverstein