Greensboro Daily Photo

South End Brewing Company

South End Brewery in located downtown on Lewis Street in the building that formerly housed Gibbs, and Lewis Street Antiques before that. This part of downtown Greensboro is actually called Southend now. The artwork on the building and the telephone pole is quite eye-catching as you approach from the Lewis Street Parking Lot. 

The business is part of the booming trend to brew beer on site. They actually have their own brewer, William Brown who got his start home brewing and as part of the Battleground Brewing Guild. With all of the local expertise in beer brewing and all of these institutions of higher education, likely, it is a matter of time until one of the colleges or universities offers a degree in fermentation studies. NC State offers a fermentation engineering continuing education course and Appalachian State offers a degree. To our knowledge that opportunity is not currently available in the Triad, but the infrastructure is here!

Stop by South End today and you will probably see lots of people here. We were there on a weekday. Happy Saturday! 

Lady Banks Roses In Full Bloom!

Today is our annual Lady Banks Climbing Rose Day. Every year around this time, we stop on Ridgeway Avenue to visit this prolific, thornless bloomer. While these roses are small, the clusters make a beautiful display. The beautiful evergreen foliage loved to climb on fences and arbors and will stay beautiful all year long. They are also disease and pest resistant. 

This little bush in Sunset Hills was first featured on Greensboro Daily Photo back in 2010 and, shortly thereafter, an NCA&T professor tracked town the owner to get permission to get a cutting off of this bush. Someday, we hope to know if that cutting has matured. After eleven years, it should be a beauty in its own right. It is one of the earliest blooming of all roses and it is always fun to record when they bloom. Mark these as blooming, in Greensboro, North Carolina in the first few days of April!

Happy Friday. It is going to be another great day in Greensboro! That link in the above paragraph will lead you to some Lady Banks fun facts, if you are interested.

Reflecting on Infrastructure and Sustainability

Infrastructure and sustainability are much in the news these days. President Biden spoke about infrastructure just yesterday. Infrastructure and sustainability are also the focus of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (see #9 here). Did you know Greensboro has a Community Sustainability Council? Their next meeting, a work session, will be April 12th. UNCG defines sustainability as "the enduring interconnectedness of social equity, the environment, economy, and aesthetics" (reference) and they even have a sustainability office. NC A&T is also playing a leadership role in sustainability research and efforts. Infrastructure system and sustainable practices are key concerns of The Greensboro Transit Authority (GTA). As of January 2020, GTA has modernizied its bus fleet with  battery-electric rechargeable busses.

The above bus stop is located at the corner of Spring Garden Street and South Holden Road. We don't know how many times a day it is served by one of the battery powered busses, but we did notice that it has a solar panel. Likely the energy generated by the panel lights the shelter by night. Perhaps there are solar charging stations at the bus stops.

Today's high school and college students are the ones who will be finding creative ideas to enhance Greensboro's sustainable practices and infrastructure system.  The possibilities are so exciting. 

The Rotary Club of Greensboro Carousel

The Rotary Club of Greensboro Carousel is a beautiful landmark between Country Park and The Greensboro Science Center. Whether you are walking the loop around the park, or visiting the Science Center, the Carousel is the beacon of joy on the hill.  The ride is open year-round and mostly open on the weekend from 10am-5pm. There are discounts for Greensboro Science Center members and a combo ticket option. It has only been open since August 26th, not even a year, but in many ways, it seems as if it has been open for a very long time. 

That beautiful carousel has 56 hand-carved, hand-painted figures. Some people have their favorite figure to ride; others are taking the challenge of riding every single one. The carousel is such a work of art, it is easy to make it a regular destination, especially if you have little ones in your life. This photo reminds us of the Wizard of Oz. Everything is gray-scale until you see the actual structure and then the colors will come alive!

Happy Wednesday!

Electric Vehicle Charging Station at Deep Roots Co-op!

The passenger car plug-in market share is growing, albeit, not quite as fast in the USA as in other countries. As an example, the total plug-in new car sales for Norway in 2020 was 74.7% and for the USA, 1.9%. * The electric car revolution is coming to Greensboro, too. It is especially encouraging to find charging stations, like the one here, downtown at Deep Roots Co-op - 600 North Eugene Street. It makes perfect sense for a grocery store co-op to have a charging station. The station is located near the back of  the Deep Roots parking lot, in the grassy median on the Joymonger's side. Just behind the tree in the background, middle, is the Lincoln Financial Group building (to help you orient even more).

While Earth Day is not technically until April 22nd, every day should be Earth Day. Those who have converted to hybrid or total plug-in cars are leading the way on doing their share to reduce their carbon footprint. Happy Tuesday!

* reference and more information HERE. 

Gaslight Apartments

The Gaslight Apartments are located in the 1100 block of West Friendly Avenue on the southern edge of Westerwood. The apartments/condos are part of a 16-unit complex, just west of the Friendly Avenue Baptist Church. They have twelve one-bedroom and four two bedroom units. They are owned by the Kairys Group, a commercial real estate company located in Chapel Hill. The Kairys Group purchased the apartments, renovated them, and have made quite a return on their investment. 

Also part of the renovation was painting the red brick and enhancing the landscaping. We always notice the Gaslight Apartments when the trees in front are blossoming. The pale pink blossoms really make the off-white, brick apartments stand out. Have a look next time you are driving by. And do hurry, the trees are greening out before our eyes.

Happy Easter 2021!

This hyacinth volunteers in a scruffy, unkempt flowerbed, coming back every year near Easter- a tangible reminder of the story of rebirth. The bulbs tolerate the Greensboro winters just fine, without any special attention. Nature just drops down a few leaves from nearby deciduous trees and, every spring, the bulbous fragrant plant pushes away the natural mulch and again shares its natural beauty. 

Today is the second Easter where Covid is affecting services. Some churches are open with social distancing measures in place. Others are still meeting online. Have you ever wondered how many churches there are in Greensboro? We have! The closest we can get to finding out is on Churchfinder.com (see HERE for Greensboro), where 300 churches are listed. So, that is a good place to start. We like to post something spiritual, reflective, or inspired by nature, every Sunday. We're going to review this list and try to find churches we've never featured over the last 13 years. Stay tuned...

... in the meantime: If you know of someone who is housebound for any reason, consider taking them a hyacinth today- little bit of spring. The scent of hyacinth is heavenly. If you receive one and are not in a position to replant it, find a friend with a yard to to plant it for you, and anticipate seeing it again next year! Let's fill our Greensboro yards with the bulbs!

Battleground Parks District

The Battleground Parks District is in Country Park, just behind the Greensboro Science Center. The park has been really busy lately. The above photo features Pavillion 9 were a family was celebrating a birthday when we visited last weekend. The whole area is comprised of 400 acres with 13 miles of greenway and trails. If you haven't seen the master plan yet, here is a copy and it is worth having a look. Presently, about a half a million people visit the existing parks with plans to grow as more features are added.

If you are out this weekend, and have a chance, walk the loop in Country Park, it has been changing quite a bit. This sign itself has only recently been painted.

Have a great rest of your weekend!