As the work week comes to a close, we share this moon over Sapporo Restaurant photo taken on Battleground Avenue. The roofline of the Japanese restaurant adds an allure to the Greensboro skyline, almost as if we are in another country. Amazing how beautiful a simple shopping complex can be at twilight!
This is our first moon shot on Greensboro Daily Photo and we are sharing it with Skywatch Friday (see photos from around the world). To see our previous contributions, go here.
The City of Greensboro has begun its tree planting for the spring. Here we see a truckload of trees, some of which are being planted on the exit ramp near Highway 29 and East Lee Street. When these trees mature, they will buffer road noise for the local neighborhood as well as make the view a more attractive. We're not sure about the scope of the project; however, it is nice to see our tax dollars being spent on something green! Hopefully, the new trees will make it through the next month weather-wise. Also, hopefully, some trees will be planted in YOUR neighborhood. How about all of us planting a tree or, at the very least, nurturing an existing one? Today, we opt for a current event over quality of photo!
Here is a view of a light pole at the corner of Yanceyville and Cypress Streets. On Wednesday, winds of over 50 miles per hour ripped through Greensboro and left a trail of items askew and teetering. We snapped this photo the day after when all was calm, the skies were blue & the air still, but brisk. Owners of the cozy green house above are lucky that the mature tree in their yard did not topple with the relentless, persistent winds.
Students in nearby Aycock Middle School reported that the historic school, built in 1923, sounded as if the walls were whistling. Floorboards and doors were creaking. Debris was tap, tap, tapping on the schoolhouse windows. Knowing that all are safe, we are happy that students could experience such an interesting weather event. If they ever have a writing prompt that starts with.... "it was a cold and windy winter day"........ they'll be set!
We're posting the scene on Sky Watch Friday where you can view skies and weather events from Greensboro to Siberia and back!
To quote Jimi Hendrix in his 1967 song 'Purple Haze', " 'scuse me while I kiss the sky." Some days Greensboro's sky is so beautiful we could just kiss it and publish the photo straight from the camera. Other days, it is so dull, we have to play around in iPhoto to enhance the visual appeal. Today's psychedelic sky is reminiscent of the black light posters so popular with the Hendrix crowd.
Greensboro of the 1960's is remembered for its involvement in the Civil Rights Movement-- from sit-ins to economic marches to protests and sermons. However, with seven institutions of higher education between here and High Point (UNCG, NC A&T, Guilford College, Greensboro College, Bennett College, High Point University, and GTCC), it is highly likely that some folks were listening to Jimi Hendrix songs and knew the lyrics to Purple Haze by heart! Here's to then, now, and everyone in between!
The photo was taken at a local golf course. The silhouetted sunset is reflected in one of the water features and is shared with the world on Skywatch Friday.
This vista is from a vantage point on Tory Hill Drive, Near Carlson Dairy Road. As you can see Carlson Farms Lake is still somewhat frozen and the Bermuda grass on the golf course is brown, brown, brown on this quiet, winter day.
The silo and hidden barn across the lake are leftover from the pre-golf course days when this property was a working dairy farm. Now these rolling hills are part of the Greensboro Country Club's Farm Course. During cold weather when golfers have retreated indoors, one can sit on the banks of the small lake and imagine the time when cows would meander down to the watering hole for a drink and back up the hill for food. While on this photo shoot, we did see a herd of deer, an Eastern bluebird, and a big yellow tabby cat hiding in the leafless bushes. Peaceful-- for now.........
View Watery Wednesday here.
Well, 2009 has come and gone. We are walking into town to celebrate New Year's Eve in Downtown Greensboro. That skyline and sapphire blue sky are beckoning. We're on Market Street. We've passed UNCG's new school of music building and the State Employees' Credit Union. We took a photo of the ornamental cabbage and have just finished admiring the Nativity Scene at Greensboro College. What will the New Year in Greensboro bring? What does 2010 have in store for you? What will GDP find to photograph in 2010? Thank you for a great year. Readership has grown. We look forward to hearing from you in the upcoming months.
Miles to go before we sleep........ Miles to go before we sleep........
This ornamental cabbage is planted at University Square, the dorms (currently) owned by Greensboro College and located across the street from Sunday's nativity scene. Over the past year on our blog, the first ornamental cabbage that we posted last February is one of GDP's most searched pictures! The cabbages are a nice burst of color this time of year. Ornamental cabbage is usually bitter to taste. Through years of assiduous cultivation, color and form have taken priority over flavor! Usually, they are grown from seed and started in July or August. Alternatively, you can find them at your local garden center!
We consider this a ruby center so we're joining in on Ruby Tuesday!
Continuing our adventure on Wendover, this may well be one of our favorite photos on Greensboro Daily Photo; it captures the flavor of Old Greensborough in conflict with New Greensboro. This rooster lives in a little house on Wendover Avenue at the corner of Bridford Parkway, one of Greensboro's busiest retail corridors. Mr. Rooster shares a yard with tethered dogs, dog houses and roaming cats. On a quiet Sunday morning, he and his free range buddies can be heard for miles around, "cock-a-doodle-doo..."
The vehicles in the background are zooming along Wendover and the little brick house is a neighbor of the Sapp Road house (featured Thursday). The white strip on the right is a roof at the shopping center. We have to chuckle because, little does Mr. Rooster realize, he is making a beeline into the parking lot of Greensboro's Spay and Neuter Clinic! Oh, and why did the rooster cross the road?......
to get away from the camera-crazy Mrs. Greensboro Daily Photo, of course! Some of her best friends behave the same way! Visit Camera Critters to see more animal photos!
Pokeweed is a native North American perennial. While some people say you can eat the leaves, this is only true for young leaves that have been boiled three times. Even then, toxin's remain. The leaves are used topically as a poultice. Perhaps the most famous pokeweed fact is that the Declaration of Independence of the United States was written with fermented pokeweed berry juice. Also, the ink was popular for letter writing during the American Civil War (1860's). Over time, the ink turns brown. Finally, giant leopard moth larvae devour the leaves. We love their beauty and lore but sure hate pulling them out of our yard!
We share this Sky Watch Friday picture today while winter has not yet kicked fall to the curb!
These relatively young autumn blaze maples are part of the landscape in the new side of Friendly Shopping Center. Autumn blaze maples are known for being fast growing, disease resistant and thriving in zones 3-8. We don't usually find parking lots attractive; however, with the green and rust trees in the background, the mostly gray and red vehicles scattered throughout, and the puffy little green bushes, this cluster of red leaves just caught our eye! For this Skywatch Friday the 13th, we hope the cold, rainy, colorless sky will prove to be LUCKY!
We can't wait to go back next year and see just how much the maples have grown.
Given that Greensboro is in hardy zone 7, we usually have our first frost between September 30 and October 30th. (Monday, October 19th felt pretty close to a first frost in Greensboro).
With or without our help, roses are getting ready for winter. Rose hips tell the plant that the season is coming to an end. The roots search for water to hydrate for the winter. Hopefully, you have long put your plant food away and made that trip to the garden store for mulch to insulate your roses, tucking them in for their long winter's nap. As is the case with the freshly-picked roses above, roses seem to get one last burst of energy in the misty, crisp fall air when the bug population has died down and the red clay has cooled. You're really not supposed to dead head or trim this late in the season, but we couldn't resist bringing these flowers inside. Since the vase is filled with WATER (front row and center), we're going to link up with Watery Wednesday.
Yesterday the sky, today the ground. It is a Saturday in October and we encourage you to take a nature hike. We did and found these black walnuts on Hobbs Road. The black walnut, also known as juglans nigra,is a species of flowering tree in the hickory family. The wood is used to make furniture and flooring, the nut meat is used in baking, the shell is used commercially for abrasive cleaning, and oil is pressed from the seeds. The drupe (fleshy part between the seed and the outer skin) is used for dyeing fabric and was even used as hair dye in previous centuries.
The tree seems ideal with its many uses, until you learn that the roots, leaves, and husks secrete a substance into the soil that actually poisons some plants. White birch trees and tomatoes are two plants that should never be planted near walnut trees. The woodsy scent of black walnuts evokes the feeling of a brisk fall morning! Do you think Yankee Candle could feature that scent and color?
This blaze of color on Stone Bluff Court, anchored in this breathtaking sky, is proof positive that summer has yet to relinquish its hold. Last Sunday was such a gift to us in Greensboro. Warm with sunny skies. The weather did take a turn for the wetter and colder on Wednesday. We do, however, need the rain.
Regarding the flowers in the foreground, up close, they resemble poinsettias. Unfortunately, we're not entirely sure what they are. If you know, do share! And here's to a great Sky Watch Friday!
Golf is a major sport and form of recreation in Greensboro, North Carolina. We have at least 12 courses: Bryan Park, Bur-Mil Park, Cardinal Golf & Country Club, Forest Oaks Country Club, Gillespie Park Golf Course, Grandover Resort's West and East Courses, The Greensboro Country Club's Ross and Maples Course, Pleasant Ridge Golf Course, Sedgefield Country Club, and Starmount Forest Country Club.
Historically, we are perhaps best known for the Greater Greensboro Open, first played in 1939 with Sam Snead winning. The tournament has been renamed more than once and played at Sedgefield, Forest Oaks, and Starmount Country Clubs.
During this hot, dry, drought-like fall in Greensboro, we had to practice great restraint not to run through this starburst of water to cool off! We post this picture of a hole being watered (NOT a watering hole!) for Watery Wednesday.
Today we celebrate the fleeting summer in Greensboro with this simple photo of a hydrangea and a lily. A friend brought us lily bulbs from Holland and they grow every year, in spite of the fact that we put no effort into them. We leave the bulbs in the ground to winter over. The Greensboro soil has been kind to them.
In front, you see a white hydrangea that suffers a little bit because it is still in a container and, every time we turn our head, in constant need of water. On the right, you see a bumble bee. He was acting like a puppy clinging to your heels in the kitchen. The bumble bee would not leave. Finally, I realized that the photo would actually look better with him in it. So, here is Mr. Bumblebee, mid-flight in his determined adventure to land on the hydrangea head.
By the way, thanks to all of you who commented on yesterday's post. It was a fabulous day of substantive comments, the kind we were hoping for when starting this blog! Thank you, thank you, thank you. Please accept this virtual bouquet if you are a regular reader and/or commenter on GDP. Oh, the bumblebee is optional!
While enjoying the Bur-Mil Park area this week, we took this photo. Bur-Mil Park is located below the flight path for several North Carolina airports so condensation trails are common. On Monday, close to sunset, we looked to the heavens and saw this unbelievable sky. It was as if the contrail was bursting into Fourth of July fireworks. Bur-Mil Park a great, free, city park where you can enjoy spending time outside not just photographing but also swimming, golfing, hiking, biking, having a picnic.
Contributing to the Sky Watch Friday this year has caused us to pause and look at the sky almost daily. We find ourselves saying things like, "Oh, those clouds will be a vibrant pink in about an hour." "Where can we go to have the best vantage point for photographing the sky?" If you are not already a skywatcher, start photographing the sky and see how much more you pay attention to the sun, clouds, and horizon line in your part of the world!
In the Piedmont Region of North Carolina, many fruits and vegetables are ready to eat. In our yard, blueberries are ripening daily, lavender is growing (a little past peak), mint is wildly rampant, cucumbers are available by the dozens, tomatoes are starting to turn red, pole beans are growing in front of our eyes, and okra is putting up a good fight against the deer. Unfortunately, watermelon blossoms are being eaten by rabbits or deer as soon as the buds open! At the farmers' markets, peaches arrive daily from the Sandhills (Moore and Richmond County). Our part of the world is full of the wonderful flavors of summer. Nothing beats fresh produce.
A few years ago, we decided to convert our property to an edible landscape. It is amazing what can grow in a small amount of space, especially if you consider the use of poles to grow vines vertically. Once you are accustomed to fresh produce, you will not want to return to salty, processed, packaged foods. Mr. GDP works hard on getting plants in the ground; we all weed and harvest; Mrs. GDP spends afternoons finding nic nacs and dishes that will photograph well with the fruits of our labor. That's what is going on in our world. To learn about others, check out the My World themed postings.
This bouquet of roses was picked from our yard. We are enjoying our roses now before the june beetles descend and start devouring them. Roses like the nutrients in Greensboro's clay, as long as it is augmented with other types of soil. We just purchased another rose bush and have vowed to learn more about keeping them healthy.
In Greensboro, we are lucky to have NCA&T University to help with our horticultural needs. Nearby, we have Sandhills Community College and NC State University. These institutions can provide as much advice as you need on growing roses. If you are local and your knowledge of roses is limited, you might want to read this short article, Roses for North Carolina.
Wouldn't that make a great book title?
Here is a slice of the sky near our house on Saturday, May 9, 2009. At first glance, Greensboro is not a particularly colorful city. However, the more we photograph our city, the more color we find. For Skywatch Friday, we wanted to capture a silhouette in combination with something other than the bold blue that permeates our sky shots. On this day, we found just what we were looking for. The color range became even more intense when we decreased the exposure a stop or two. We are struck by how unattractive the tree on the upper left is by day and how fabulous it looks as a silhouette.
Happy May Day, International Workers' Day/Labor Day. This picture shows spring in Greensboro, a little over a week ago. Today, the tulips are long gone, the azaleas are past peak. The trees have greened. Today happens to be Skywatch Friday and Theme Day for the City Daily Photo group. The theme this month is shadows. Ironic as we try very hard to take shadowless pictures. The above picture shows the harshness of the mid-day sun and the SMALL shadows cast by the petals of the yellow tulips back onto the petals to the right.The original intent of the photograph was to document spring in our front yard, showing the layers of color. If you lived nearby, we would pick you a bouquet!
Tuesday night, about an hour before sunset, we felt like we were in the Land of Oz! Retrieving the mail, we saw this rainbow hovering above our house. Actually, it was a double rainbow. By the time we found the camera, the sky began to darken. At least we caught the rainbow's last hurrah. Every photographer deserves to capture a rainbow at least once. Tuesday was our night! If you haven't had your chance, we hope it will come your way soon. Some rainbow trivia.........
A rainbow's arc is directly opposite the sun. In a double rainbow, color order is reversed. To see a rainbow, the angle of light refraction needs to be 42 degrees from the observer's eyes. Iris was the Greek goddess of the rainbow. You can only see a rainbow if the sun is behind you. New York is the US state with the most number of families with the surname "Rainbow." Finally, if you have three and a half minutes, we encourage you to listen to the now-deceased Hawaiian Israel Kamakawiwo'Ole's version of "Over the Rainbow." The combination of his voice and ukulele playing is heavenly. If our You Tube link doesn't work, please search out the video where he sings; not just the instrumental-tribute.
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You're 2 kind!
