Greensboro Daily Photo

Palm Sunday on Bach Terrace

^{It is hard to believe on this holiest of seasons for Christians, people are having to self-distance and stay home. Sadly, Easter services will needed to be celebrated at home this year. As you drive around Greensboro, it is interesting, and touching, the way people display their faith. This house, just off North Church Street on Bach Terrace, has a painted, wooden Jesus. To be sure, they will be mindful that today is Palm Sunday. Hopefully, they have internet service or cable and can participate virtually. People seem to be finding ways to keep in touch with their school, work, and religious communities during this quarantine.}

^{On another note, thank you to the readers yesterday who helped us solve the mystery of that ugly ball on a cedar tree. Susan Johnston likened it to pictures of the corona virus. JE and Tom Davis accurately identified this cedar/apple rust fungus. Maybe we'll have to seek out more "what is it" curiosities to publish! In the meantime, Happy almost Easter and almost Passover, dear readers.}

What is it?

So, with Greensboro honoring the quarantine and staying at home we need to get a little more creative with the Greensboro Daily Photo posts. And, we are determined. Thank you readers for continuing to check in. The above photo was about the most curious thing we've seen on a recent nature walk. Does anybody have any idea what this is? It is either something about to hatch or it is a disease on an evergreen.

If you recognize this curiosity, please tell us. Whatever it is, it grows in Greensboro. Happy Saturday!

Night Sky Over Greensboro

By day and by night, the sky has been so beautiful in Greensboro this past week. The above photo was taken in northwest Greensboro about 8:30, just as it was about dark. You can see that stars are starting to appear. Stars are even more visible with less light pollution as of late. The mature trees on the above lot are representative of so many properties in Greensboro. 

Tonight is First Friday in downtown Greensboro. While we can't stroll the streets for ourselves, businesses are getting creative about ways to deliver to homes. And, not just restaurants are delivering. If you have a go-to downtown store, it is worth calling and seeing if they can bring something fun to you. Remember to support local businesses. Remember to admire our beautiful city- even at night!

Spring in Greensboro

Greensboro was this beautiful yesterday. As long as you are are able to maintain physical distance, consider heading outside and admiring the beauty of Greensboro this time of year. Yesterday, the skies were clean from the recent rain and the decrease in traffic. Just look at the range of color in the photo of this lot in northwest Greensboro. As you can see, the sun was casting long shadows since it was after 6:00 p.m.

Without a lot of effort, you can see the photographer in this photo. With a little more work, you can see a lovely home hidden behind the trees. We could photograph this same spot every few days, and it would look different. In spring, Greensboro's landscape is ever-changing, always beautiful, even on overcast days.

Free Books

As we continue with all but essential businesses closed, disposing of unwanted items has limited options. You can't donate to thrift stores; you can't sell books to used bookstores. You can sell some things online, throw items away, or put them at the street and offer them away for free. Even then, people are reluctant to touch anything that has been in the hands of others.

At any rate, offering books for free is a very nice gesture. The books in this box were very popular, contemporary fiction titles. Someone would love to read them. The books in this spontaneous, "pop up" library were being offered in northeast Greensboro. However, many neighborhoods in Greensboro have Little Free Libraries. If you are interested in setting up a LFL in your neighborhood, read the history and find a map of where they are already located, see here. In the meantime, continue find ways to experience social interaction while maintaining social distance. Happy Wednesday... and today's post is not an April Fool's joke!

Spreading Love with Sidewalk Chalk

During this time of self-quarantining, people are doing all kinds of creative things to reach out to people. Also, chalk, a writing tool that had become virtually obsolete, is in great demand. People are drawing on driveways and sidewalks. This is a message we ran across in northwest Greensboro yesterday. It is at a home where parents regularly entertain their children with outdoor activities at home. 

Hats off to the parents who in a position to spend more time with their children and for their coming up with creative ways to entertain them. To be sure, positive messages and bright drawings are uplifting for people who walk by. What are people doing in your neighborhood?

Why Did the Turkey Cross the Road?

People are commenting that they are seeing more and more animals as traffic decreases and as we are out walking more. One reader commented on seeing a fox. Another mentioned that there seem to be more birds this year. This female turkey was spotted strutting across the road on Tory Hill Drive in northwest Greensboro.  Who knows if animals are behaving differently, or if we are just noticing more. At any rate, the turkey seemed to be on a mission and she did not linger once she realized there were humans nearby.

The turkey population in North Carolina used to be plentiful and then from the early 1900s to the 1060s, the wild turkey population declined significantly. Thanks to measures taken by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, wild turkeys are once again plentiful in North Carolina (reference and read more here).

Today's photo is a little bit of evidence that yes, there are wild turkeys in Greensboro!

Dogwoods Are Starting to Bloom

Today is Sunday and, in Greensboro, dogwoods are starting to bloom. Regardless of your religious beliefs, the flowers signify beauty and rebirth. In Christianity, the dogwood symbolizes rebirth and resurrection. Some believe the the cross Jesus was crucified on was made of dogwood. However, there is no reference to that in the Bible, and dogwoods don't grow naturally in Israel. 

As we weather this quarantine, together, but apart, today would be a great day to spend outside. If you are a Christian and missing your church community, likely, they are offering services online. For that matter, even though we are in Greensboro, through the Internet, you can listen to about any church service you want to today. Most are being recorded and you can watch them any time you want- even at a future date. Regarding these dogwoods, better hurry. They wait for nobody and spring is quickly springing! Happy Sunday!