Greensboro Daily Photo

Tank Farm Explosion

Locals will recall that on June 13th, lightening struck this gas tank in the photo above. It exploded into flames, fueled by a million gallons of oil inside the 50 thousand barrel tank. This tank was one of 72 in the area, owned by Colonial Pipeline of Georgia. With the fast, efficient work of the firefighters, the fire was contained and isolated to this one tank.

We've wanted to get out and photograph the tank farm for a while now. Today, we are using this photo for ABC Wednesday on the dreaded X day. X is for eXXXXXplosion.

 

American Red Cross

The American Red Cross tries to ensure that communities have access to sufficient blood as supplies are needed. As we enter summer vacation season and the Fourth of July vacation, consider doing something altruistic and donating blood. Donating blood is something we can do to help others that doesn't impact our wallets. Summer is the time of many accidents, often requiring blood. While hurricane season doesn't usually blow as far inland as Greensboro, many along the coast, and beyond, will suffer weather related accidents. Let's have a ready supply of all types. Recently, we noticed a sign indicating a  need for O negative. However, no healthy blood is rejected!!!!

Here is Greensboro's  American Red Cross Center, located at 1501 Yanceyville Street. Call them at 336-333-2111 if you have any questions about the process. We're linking this picture with the Ruby Tuesday meme to raise awareness WORLDWIDE. This photo was taken from the parking lot of the United Way Volunteer Center just across the street. So, after giving blood, you could walk over and consider giving of your time. Alternatively, check out the Facebook page of the volunteer center!

 

You've Got Mail

Here we see the postal carrier delivering mail to String Studios at 604 South Elam Avenue. Our Greensboro postal carriers work especially hard when temperatures are extreme. Lately the weather has been relentlessly hot and sunny-- high 90's. 

If we were sending mail to String Studios, we would write a letter to Scott Manring, one of the instructors, to tell him how much we enjoyed his playing and singing in Providence Gap, a locally written and produced play. Scott, not one to grab the spotlight, seems almost elusive at times; however, he is a mighty fine musician and instructor with a mighty fine string studio. So..... Scott Manring, you've got (fan)  mail.....as does this postal carrier.

 

Praying.......Mantis

Today, we invite you into our garden (literally) to pause and reflect on nature. Here we see an insect known, in English, as the praying mantis. It is called a PRAYING mantis because when it holds it's two front legs together, it looks like it is praying. The scientific name Mantodea  and common name, MANTIS, come from the Greek word for prophet. As for why it is called a prophet, we do not know. 

What do you think of when you see these insects. Praying prophets? Do you see the beauty of nature and the world around you?  Do you see a tidy little bug that does no harm to your garden, yet devours bugs that are harmful to the garden? If you are a little cricket, stuck in the grasping, spiked forelegs, you might call this insect a PREYING mantis. Does you perspective change learning that the closest living relative of the mantis is a cockroach?  Like poets and writers have been saying since the Greeks in the 3rd century, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What beauty can you find today in your world?

 

Fire Dancing Under the Azure Night Sky

The folks you saw stretching and bending in yesterday's post were also entertainers in the fire dance at the end of the Summer Solstice Celebration. The fire dance was set up on the basketball court at the Arboretum. This was such a nice grand finale and hard to believe it was free! We heard children talking about wanting to learn to dance with fire. Who knows at what point in one's life something sparks a lifelong passion, a career? Those children were captivated. 

On another note, Chilean poet, Pablo Neruda, writes about the blue, night sky. The sky is blue just at the point where daylight lets go and night has not completely taken over! Since fire is reflected onto the people in the circle, we saved this blue, night sky photo for the weekend reflection meme.

 

Balancing Act

This is the Cirque Style Balancing Act at the Summer Solstice event last weekend. The man and woman twisted and stretched and balanced, using every muscle in their body. Unfortunately, we didn't catch their names and couldn't find them mentioned by name on the Solstice 2010 website. They were standing on wooden boxes but this view of just the two of them showcases that beautiful, Carolina blue sky! Also, they had more contortionistic poses but this one where her hands are extended like a bird in flight seemed to fit with Skywatch Friday. Finally, the couple delighted the audience after dark with their fire and baton dance.

As the temperature was over 100 degrees in much of North Carolina today, here's to a weekend of staying cool. 

 

Third Friday @ Center City Park

Today's post was taken at Center City Park last weekend at the Third Friday event. Each month, a different organization sponsors a family-friendly movie. June's movie was The Secret Garden, sponsored by the Children's Museum. (If you are interested in the July-October offerings, check here. On that same calendar, you can find the exercise/fitness offerings on Mondays from 6:30- 7:30 at the fountain. Next up on Monday is Tai Chi). 

We are so fortunate to have a park downtown for people to enjoy. Families brought snacks, yard toys, and blankets and camped out on the lawn until the movie started. If a vendor is looking for a good business, a hula hoop cart near the hot dog stand would probably generate a lot of money.Greensboro has an unbelievable selection of free events on the calendar this summer. Spend summer outdoors. Makes these events part of your family tradition.

For this photo, we were using a wide angle lens. The buildings appear to be leaning into each other because of the camera. However, we really liked this photo because it situates the event DOWNTOWN. 

 

"W" is for Warhol @ Weatherspoon

This is not the clearest photo but it captures the spirit of the Warhol event at the Weatherspoon Museum last weekend. More than one Warhol wig wearer was mingling in the crowd. The "Big Shot" button represents not only the title of the exhibit, "Big Shots: Andy Warhol Polaroids," but also the fact that anyone who purchases a Weatherspoon Art Museum membership during the run of the Warhol exhibit (before Sept. 19th) will be entered into a drawing for a (weekend) night's stay at the nearby Proximity Hotel, Greensboro's LEED Platinum "green" hotel.  There will be five winners in that special drawing.

We've already written about the Warhol event (here); however, for ABC Wednesday, when "W" is the letter of the week, we couldn't resist one more posting about: Warhol, Weatherspoon, wig, weekend, & winning! Serendipity prevails again. When we started this round of ABC Wednesday, we pondered the alphabet in relationship to Greensboro and wondered what on earth we would post for "W."

 

2010 Solstice Event at Weatherspoon Museum

The Seventh Annual Summer Solstice Party at UNCG's Weatherspoon Art Museum, held last Friday night, featured the Polaroid photos of Andy Warhol, a band, food, and intergenerational fun. In the above photo, guests are waiting in line to get their photos taken at the Instant Photo Booth. Thanks to many sponsors, the Weatherspoon was able to make this event free and open to the public. Kids enjoyed playing in the courtyard and eating the  bright yellow 'banana heads' candy. College students and young adults enjoyed donning 70's attire and listening to the live music of Rough Hands. Older adults enjoyed the flashback to the 70's. Many enjoyed the artwork. Surely, Warhol was decades ahead of the rest of us on social networking. His Polaroids were Warhol's version of Facebook.

This photo is dedicated to friend Jane who held the elevator while Mrs. GDP was busy snapping this photo-- which we're sharing with the red lovers over at Ruby Tuesday. 

 

Summer Solstice Event at Arboretum 2010

Greensboro was action packed with free events this weekend. Here we see a photo from the Summer Solstice Celebration 2010 held in the Greensboro Arboretum on Sunday. These beautifully decorated women were over the top beautiful in costume and in spirit. Here we see them at 8pm. They were fluttering around reminding vendors that it was time to pack up and prepare for the fire show. If you missed this wonderful event, put it on your calendar for next year! The vendors, entertainment, attendees, it was just perfect! This the weather was HOT and dry, making strolling through the misting pipes even more enjoyable!

We're at the longest days of the year and our town is taking advantage of all of the hours of daylight! We're sharing this one with Mellow Yellow Monday. Stop back every day this week to enjoy photos from all of the FREE events we attended this weekend.

 

Country Churches like Hopewell Wesleyan

Happy Father's Day! 

If you are looking for something to do with dad, consider going for a ride or taking a long walk. Go find places from his or your childhood. You could ride and look at the old-time ways in rural Guilford County. The North Carolina countryside is quickly disappearing, especially around Greensboro. However, here we see a country church at the corner of Pleasant Ridge and Carlson Dairy Road. Hopewell Wesleyan Church is over 100 years old. In the front is a cemetery and to the right a majestic old oak tree. Hopewell Wesleyan struggles with membership as so many people are seeking out the mega-churches. 

Something about these churches seems so wholesome and pure.........

 

Summer Solstice Event at Arboretum

The Summer Solstice Celebration in the Greensboro Arboretum takes place tomorrow from 3-9pm. The family friendly celebration will have something for everybody. Some years it rains; some years the sun is brutal; EVERY year everyone has fun. Rain or shine, the more outlandish your outfit-- garland, tulle, flowers, and wands-- the more you will fit in. Consider bringing dad out to hear the good music, get a massage, listen to some ringing bowls, be transported back to his teen years, and watch the fire ceremony at 9pm. Above is a picture from last year and if you click through you will see our post from last year. This free event is an example of why Greensboro is such a great city. Events like this have plenty of great items for purchase; yet, if you are on a tight budget or have downsized, you can come out and feel equally welcome. You can bet we'll be there, camera in hand! Come feel the positive energy!

 

Askew!

Askew is a game of suspension and balance invented by a local Greensboro man. We purchased the game in 2006 when he was demonstrating it at Guilford College. Askew involves the laws of physics and challenges fine motor skills. We like it because people usually don't get upset when you talk while playing and there are several ways to modify the game. Plus, we just love creative, innovative people and are darned proud that this award winning game was invented in our back yard! Here we see it set up on desks at a local school. We think we'll keep our set in the car this summer to tinker with during concerts in the parks and other public events. What was invented in your city? 

Hey, that would be a good City Daily Photo theme!

 

Vacant...The House (Formerly Known as Waffle)

The building, formerly a Waffle House, used to look like this. Their neighbor,  Elizabeth's Pizza on North Battleground, always said for phone-in callers, "You know we're the Elizabeth's across the street from Laddie and Duke's and beside Waffle House, right?" Apparently, many people call in orders at one Elizabeth's and go to another location expecting to pick up their order. 

About a year ago, Laddie and Duke's Restaurant, a Greensboro institution, was torn down. Now, the bright yellow and black Waffle House got painted battleship gray, with no evidence that a Waffle House ever existed at 3929 Battleground Avenue. How strange for a restaurant to go from being open 24-hours a day 365 days a year to 0 days a year in 24 hours flat!  We'll have to drive elsewhere to get hash brown potatoes "scattered, covered, smothered, chunked, diced, peppered, capped, and topped," in Waffle House lingo. Elizabeth's Pizza at North Battleground will have to find a new way to identify their location. Perhaps they'll use GPS coordinates.

For ABC Wednesday, "V" is for vacant.

 

Iron Hen Cafe

The Iron Hen Cafe is Fresh. Local. Good. The eatery is located at the corner of Wendover and Cridland Avenues, across from Latham Park on the edge of Fisher Park. The Iron Hen Cafe buys from 10 local farmers and serves everything from hearty breakfast foods to creative meals the rest of the day-- seared crab cake sandwich, local angus beef burger, Asian pear salad, portabello mushroom sandwich are a few of the choices. The cafe adds sparkle and energy to this corner of town. In recent years, food establishments in this location have not been the most successful.

The Ruby Tuesday-red paper box stands out against the pale green and white background. Let's hope the cafe can thrive and that they remain Fresh. Local. & Good. For our typography loving friends, we're guessing the font for these three words is Lynotype Aroma. Any thoughts?

 

526 A South Elm Street

Here we see a vintage building at 526 South Elm Street being transformed from an antique store into a restaurant. It was near Lion's Crown Antiques, which has moved. In the last ten years, downtown Greensboro has transformed from a low rent to prime real estate area. When the new business is established, we'll show you an updated shot.

For now, we encourage you to look back through the photos from the previous week and to leave a comment on this, our Mellow Yellow Monday photo!

 

First Baptist Church of Greensboro

The First Baptist Church on Friendly Avenue is a grand, sprawling building. We've featured the façade before (here); however, today we are showing this little view on Friendly Avenue for all to see these prayer cloths that were displayed prominently a few weeks ago. Each piece of cloth had a message on it. One had written, "Dear God, may all that we do glorify You."  One of the yellows, "Pray for universal love."  If you wrote a message on a panel, what would you write?

 

1960 Catalina with NC Plates

With its snazzy grille, sleek shape, and V8 engine, the 1960 Pontiac Catalina was a beauty then and now. The aqua Catalina in the above photo was spotted in Greensboro a couple of weeks ago. We stopped by the Red Collection Consignment Furniture Store at the corner of Patterson Street and South Holden Road and this car stood out like a turquoise nugget in a sea of gravel. It had a classic car license plate and, the funny part was in the back windshield on the driver's side-- an of-the-same-vintage Gumby and Pokey were perched waving to onlookers. If you squint, you can see Gumby in all of his glory.

We're sharing this photo with the Weekend Reflection folks. From the bumper to the hub caps to the hood to the windshield, this vehicle is one big, mobile reflection!

 

Watermelon Skies at GTCC Culinary Tech

This watermelon was carved by students at Greensboro Technical Community College. GTCC has an amazing Culinary Technology program that prepares graduates for careers in food service. Years ago, our friends' children were in the childcare program at GTCC and the culinary program made lunches for the children. We used to laugh that the toddlers and preschoolers were eating chicken cordon bleu for lunch. Even if it wasn't literally chicken cordon bleu, the food was gourmet, nutritious, local and TASTY!

We stumbled on this humorous carving that the Parisian Promenade last weekend and thought it would be perfect for Skywatch Friday.

 

School's Out for the Summer 2010

Well, it is time for our annual "School's Out for the Summer" photo. Today is the last day for students in the Guilford County Schools. If you've been in a school at the end of the school year, you know it is a special time for students and teachers to celebrate their accomplishments and hard work, to clean classrooms, cull items, say good-byes and organize for the next year. Closure and fresh beginnings are a good thing. Ideally, summer is time for families to reconnect. Teachers have a time to rejuvenate and gather fresh ideas. Students have time to mature and learn in an unschooled way (a link worth viewing). If you have children who are home for the summer, we hope you make the most of your time together.

The busses in the photo above belong to the Greensboro Day School on Lake Brandt Road. They are parked in front of a church because the Day School purchased the church to use for special events. Even though Day School students have already finished the school year, we liked the dormant appearance of the busses. Bus lots countywide will look like this..........tonight.

Call us "old school," but we love the idea of the traditional 10-month school calendar! 

 

Street Art at First Friday

For First Friday, this artist was painting at the corner of Elm and West Lewis Streets. She is painting in front of Table 16 Restaurant which bills itself as "Greensboro's finest new world cuisine." In the front of the restaurant, they were serving some kind of wrap, possibly fish tacos. The art is very appropriate for a restaurant and fun for any office or home with a lot of wall space.  Wonder where the painting will find its permanent home? While we were at the restaurant, we ran into Adelaide of Adelaide's Corner Cottage. Maybe the painting will end up at her store!

For ABC Wednesday... 

U is a hard letter. No umbrellas as it isn't raining; no underwear because we're family friendly. We're going for U is for urban and U is for (burnt) umber, as there are touches of it in the painting.

 

Parisian Promenade

On Sunday, Greensboro Beautiful hosted the Parisian Promenade at Tanger Bicentennial Garden on Hobbs Road. Their blog describes the event to a T. " The Parisian Promenade recreates the sights, scenes, sounds and smells of a spring afternoon in Paris-- all in our own Bicentennial Garden. Sidewalk artists, strolling musicians, jugglers and sidewalk cafes are featured-- all within the colorful backdrop of the garden in bloom." You didn't have to have a poodle to attend; however, we dubbed this white, standard poodle as best of show. We also loved seeing the original art and talking to the artists. The accordion player was delightful. The food prepared by the culinary program at GTCC was fabulous. We also saw a trained cat, a woman on stilts, a game of giant lawn chess, a dog parade, and so many other delightful things.
 

We're trying this on Ruby Tuesday  (see the top bow).

 

First Friday at Center City Park

This photo, taken straight from the camera (zooming while shooting), shows a hot dog stand at Center City Park last Friday. The event, known as First Friday, features food vendors, performing artists, and arts and crafts stands in Center City Park. Along Elm Street, many businesses stay open late, art galleries have special events, and the parking lot at Elm and MLK Drive features an Indie Arts and Crafts Market. First, we shopped the Indie Market; next we ate dinner at Liberty Oak; then, we walked up to Center City Park. For us, the evening was just perfect. So many people-- of all ages-- were out enjoying the weather and the fun activities. If you are local, join us on July 2nd for the next Fun Friday!

As we face a new work week, this photo represents visually our feelings about how quickly the weekend flew by-- dizzying, lightening speed. Adiós weekend; hola Monday! It is time for Mellow Yellow Monday.

 

Vacation Bible School

Our Sacred Sunday spiritual photo takes us to an announcement of vacation bible school. As summer vacation approaches for school children, local churches are polishing up their vacation bible school programs. Here we see the banner on West Market Street in front of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church. EGYPT: Joseph's Journey from Prison to Palace is a commercial package available for purchase so that church volunteers have an effective curricula with engaging activities, crafts, and worksheets. The sign evokes a tradition that has gone on for generations: Kicking off the summer with vacation bible school. Can you imagine 5 half-day sessions of summer camp for the whopping fee of $10? If your child has the time and you have a compatible belief system, this is an opportunity that is hard to pass up. 
 

Fishbones, Inspired by Tim Burton

Fishbones is a restaurant, literally, on the corner of Walker & Elam. This is a beautifully wonky entrance that Tim Burton would love. Below the fishbones sign, the reflection almost looks like bats flying. And the blue in the sky looks like wings. According to Yahoo-local, Fishbones offers a "funky cuisine in a neoclassical atmosphere...... boast(ing) a large variety of international and regional selections on their menu."  Hopefully Mr. & Mrs. GDP will eat there soon so we can snap a picture of the inside and provide our own review of the place. We know for sure however, that it is located on a very fun little corner of town and that its neighbor, The Blind Tiger, has been providing Greensboro with great music since 1988.

This is our contribution to James' Weekend Reflection.

 

Southern Railway Station

Greensboro's Southern Railway Station, located at 236 East Washington Street, has been a local landmark since 1927. In 1978, it was donated to the City of Greensboro and, in 2005, reopened as the J. Douglas Galyon Depot. Today, the depot serves as both a rail and bus station. The main waiting room of the passenger station has a mural showing the Southern Railway network in the early years. This building is a brilliant example of the efforts of historic preservation in our city. It is a safe, clean facility that looks as solid as a bank vault. GDP has featured the railway system before as it has played such an important role in the history of Greensboro. Our nickname is the Gate City because so much commerce in the state passed through Greensboro on the trains.

This is our contribution for Skywatch Friday, where hundreds of people show the sky above their city on a weekly basis.

 

Teamwork on Elam Avenue

This dreamy, bucolic scene looks like it was taken on a farm in rural Guilford County. In reality, it was taken near town, on Elam Avenue this past weekend. Here we see a young couple working diligently to get their yard mulched and new plants in the ground. Their whole block, just south of Walker, seems to be taking the low maintenance approach to yardening. People are opting for flowers, bushes, vegetables and herbs, over grass. In some cases they are planting edibles.

We've about decided that where one sees orange flowers, purple ones are not far away. This photo fits our theory. It almost looks at if the people in the photo dressed to matched the plants, rudbeckia orange and hydrangea blue! 

 

Tomato Time

We're starting to see the first round of tomatoes at the Farmers' Market. What could be more wholesome than to be out buying some 100% Pesticide Free tomatoes? 

If you still want to plant some tomatoes, hurry, it isn't too late. To learn more, here is a great resource, Our state's two land grant institutions, NC State University in Raleigh A & T State University in Greensboro, collaborated to form a fabulous cooperative extension group. They provide information, advice, and solutions to the state's agriculture and food, servicing all 100 counties as well as our Cherokee Reservation. Here is their site about tomatoes.

For our ABC Wednesday crowd, "T" is for tomatoes, and if you want to see some of our past T's, look at: tattoo, truck, tutu, train trestle. And that's enough!
 

Highway 68

If you are from Greensboro, likely, you know this photo was taken at the intersection of Highway 68 and Pleasant Ridge Road. This section of 68, just north of the airport, is known as Lynwood Smith Expressway. In Greensboro, there is also a Lynwood Drive, Lynwood Loop, Lynwood Lakes & Lynwood Lakes Baptist Church. Our google search reveals C. Lynwood Smith, Jr. is a local judge and that Dr. C.Lynwood Smith is a physician in Wake Forest, NC. However, after a few screens of searching, we're not seeing WHY this section of highway, a memorial highway,  is named Lynwood Smith Expressway. Who was the Lynwood Smith of the highway? Do you know????

Today, the 1,300 + people who maintain city daily photo blogs were encouraged to post a picture of a funny sign. Our signs aren't "ha ha" funny but they are FUN signs that situate the picture in Greensboro. When seeing the 68 North 68 South sign, one must decide: head north? south? go straight? It is kind of funny that the GREENsboro water tower is red checkered. Actually our city was named for Major General Nathanael Greene, even though the green trees could have you thinking otherwise. 

 
  Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Memorial Day 2010

In this photo, a Korean War (1950- 1953) veteran walks through the Farmer's Market on Sandy Ridge. We all marveled at how easily he still fit into his uniform, given that he is at least 75- 80 years old. He wore the uniform with pride, maintaining it impeccably from shoes to necktie to insignia to hat. Likely, he attended one of the morning events honoring those who died while serving their country. We heard several people thank him for his service. Here is our photo from last year. We hope you have time to view it too.
 

Memorial Day, also known as Decoration Day, is the day Americans remember men and women who died while serving their country. Unlike Veterans' Day, Columbus Day, and President's Day, many businesses still close in observance of Memorial Day. Traditionally, Memorial Day marked the beginning of summer and the end of the school year. This year, the last day of school in Greensboro (Guilford County) is June 10th. Let's hope students, with their families, took time out of their three day weekend to remember those who gave their lives for our country. May the school children see peace in their lifetime. 

Purgatory, Inspired by Billy Cone

"Purgatory is the condition or process of purification or temporary punishment in which the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven" (Wikipedia: purgatory). Today, for Sacred Sunday, we propose this view as one that might represent purgatory: The judgement chairs with cold metal arms, one for you, one for the judge; the angel above, ready to carry you to Heaven on her* back-- if you are ready; stark walls as not to distract from the issues at hand; finally, a bright light from above.

Actually, the scene captures one of Billy Cone's photographs on the bathroom wall of the Undercurrent Restaurant in Greensboro.  Billy Cone has been a professional photographer for nearly three decades. Billy lives in Huntersville, NC. Recently, he has published several books on photography. Additionally, he draws and paints interesting faces, likely inspired by his photography. Billy is the grand nephew of the Cone Sisters (Claribel and Etta) of Baltimore and the Cone Brothers, Moses and Ceasar, of Proximity Manufacturing Company of GREENSBORO, NC.

Today's Sacred Sunday shot is presented in black & white for our readers, including the monochrome enthusiasts at Monochrome Weekend. Let's also link to Sunday Bridges since purgatory is the asserted BRIDGE between earth and heaven.

 *Dina, of Jerusalem Hills Daily Photo thinks this is a male angel. Looks like it. Her posts, live from the Holy Land, are VERY interesting and often about religion and history. A must for our loyal Sacred Sunday readers.

Breakfast at Your House

Where should we go for breakfast?........ 

How about your house?........ 

But, but, but, we're out of eggs!...... 

No, Your House at 2306 Battleground Avenue, on the northwest corner of Old Irving Park!....

YOUR HOUSE, a classic diner, has been open 24 hours, since 1965. That's 45 years of breakfast specials, master burgers, club sandwiches, boiled eggs, and free refills. We had the two egg, grits, toast, and jelly special for $2.25. This is the kind of place where everyone is honey and sweetie and they really do know your name, if you are a regular.

We're sharing this with Weekend Reflections. If you look around the cook's head, you can see some subtle reflections.

 

Memorial Day Weekend

Many people leave town for Memorial Day Weekend. In Greensboro, we can get to the beach in less than 4 hours and oh does Greensboro love to head to the beach. Heading to the mountains is another option. Some say North Carolina has it all-- from the mountains to the seashore.  If you drive away from the city, we remind you to be careful on the roads. This rear view mirror look at downtown Greensboro is one side of the Marriott, also seen in this photo . Even the Grasshoppers baseball team will be out of town this weekend.

This is our Skywatch Friday photo.

 

Hydrangea Time in Greensboro

This hydrangea/hortensia, native of southern & eastern Asia, is thriving in downtown Greensboro. The flowers can be flat or more rounded like a mop head. The colors can range from white to light lime green, to pink and purple. The mophead flower on this bush is bright pink, indicative of the alkaline soil. In Japan, certain hydrangea leaves are crumpled into teas. However, according to Wikipedia, hydrangeas are moderately toxic. Perhaps the cyanide is found in the flowers. At any rate, research it more before you try to make tea.

If you love hydrangeas, you might want to consider attending the first annual Hydrangea and Garden Tour in Augusta, Georgia on June 24th. If you go, let us know what you learn. Do you have hydrangeas in your community?

 

Water Tower & Spa Store

Nothing beats a good water tower for advertisement (like this peach). 

In the above photo, you see a water tower with our city's name featured prominently-- in all caps: GREENSBORO. This water tower and the Southern Home Spa Store in front of the tower are found at 105 Edwardia Drive, just as the road snakes around toward Wendover Ave. Like good sleuths, we followed Edwardia only to find the the site of the tower and to happen upon this scene. Never have we seen this building before but, thanks to our commitment to posting a photo a day, we landed here! The spa store has been in business for 28 years, a real accomplishment in this economy. 

To prepare this post, we asked Mr. Search Engine how much water a "typical" tower holds. We learned that towers range from holding 150,000 gallons to 2 million gallons and, as a rule of thumb, the tower should hold as much water as the service area uses in a given day-- in case the pump fails. If you want to learn more about water towers, a good starting point is here. 

For today's memes, no shortage of "S" words..... "S" is for spa & store & southern & sleuth & site & scene & seen & snakes for ABC Wednesday. Also, for Watery Wednesday, plenty of water in this tower, thanks to the recent rainfall. Finally, plenty of fun ways to use WATER in the above spa and garden store.

 

Old Central Fire Station

The Old Central Fire Station opened in 1926 at 318 North Greene Street. When it was at peak use-- pre mid 1950's-- it housed not only the fire trucks but also an elaborate alarm system, a garage, and a training tower. It closed in 1980, being replaced by the Church Street Station. Fortunately, several of these early fire stations have been preserved in Greensboro. This one, dwarfed by the Marriott and only a block away from the JP building, is on the National Register of Historic Places. At one time, this building was home to four fire companies. Now, it is a grand relic of our past. Greensboro's fire fighters are committed to meeting the community's needs and can usually get to a fire in less than seven minutes. 

We 're sharing with the Ruby Tuesday crowd.

 

Genesis Monument

The Genesis Marker found in Fisher Park represents the geographic center of Guilford County... Ground Zero...the epicenter... "as determined for the establishment of Greensborough as the county seat of Guilford County, 1808."  Originally, the county seat was located in Martinville, slightly northwest, near Guilford Battleground. It was moved once surveyors determined the actual geographic center. However, this specific spot was deemed too swampy and low. In the end, the courthouse was built less than a mile southwest, on higher ground, near the intersection of Market and Elm Streets.  If you are interested, the Preservation Greensboro website has interesting information on Fisher Park, Greensboro's original civic open space, the area on which this Genesis Marker is found. As stated on the marker, the original village of Greensborough was comprised of 42 acres purchased by the commissioners from Scotch-Irish settler, Ralph Gorrell, for $98 in 1808.

We encourage every citizen of Guilford County to visit this marker, at least once. This would make a nice picnic outing for fourth grade students since that is the North Carolina history year. If you are from one of the other 1,300+ city daily photo sites around the world, does your city, county, community have anything to mark the geographic center?

 

Canterbury's Phillips Chapel

Here we see a photo of the Gothic-style Phillips Chapel on the campus of Canterbury School at 5400 Old Lake Jeanette Road. The chapel has stunning stained glass windows and seats 600. The Chapel hosts events for the community, hosts religious events as well as services for the K-8 students at the adjacent Canterbury School. Chapel is held three times a week and is rooted in the Episcopalian belief system. The chapel is named for Kermit G. Phillips who was instrumental in the design and building of this chapel. This Sacred Sunday picture was taken on a quiet day on campus. Normally, the campus has many students, parents, and teachers walking between the buildings.

Louis La Vache of San Fransisco Daily Photo has started a new meme, Sunday Bridges. Unless he moos me off the meme island, I'm posting this a a bridge from one building to the next. You can be sure if you comment on Louis' blog, he'll moo back within the half hour!!!
 

Froggie Went A Courtin'

This year, frogs seem more abundant than in recent years.  We've got lots of frogs around our house and want them to stay happy and healthy. Therefore, we avoid using pesticides. With approximately 5,000 species, frogs are one of the most diverse, but threatened, groups of vertebrates. We spent a lot of time studying this frog before photographing from this angle. Judging by the whitish spots under the eyes of this frog on our door, this is a gray tree frog . The photo shows the translucence, permeability, and vulnerability of a frog's skin. Also, you can barely see it but between the frog's eye and extended right front leg, some bugs are using his skin as a host. 

Now that the days are longer and the weather warmer, we hope to capture more photos for Camera Critters. We're going to double dip and share this with our friends at Weekend Reflections! If you want to smile and have about a minute, click here to listen to Froggie went a Courtin'!

 

Magnolia Trees at Peak

In Greensboro, the magnolia blossoms were at their peak last week. The smooth, fragrant blossoms make a yard smell heavenly. The magnolia tree in the photo is about 4 stories tall. Magnolia is an ancient genus that evolved before bees existed! Magnolias were pollinated by beetles and adapted to prevent damage from beetles. Magnolias are evergreen and ALWAYS shedding. You know you have something to rake with a magnolia tree in the yard. This family of flowering trees dates back 20+ million years and has survived many geological events, including the continental drift! In Asia, the bark is used for medicinal purposes and is even said to have properties that help prevent periodontal disease. So, perhaps if you are camping and forget a toothbrush, you can snap off a piece of a magnolia tree and brush away. 

We're sharing this ancient, majestic beauty with the Sky Watch Friday community. We are ever so grateful for our meme buddies, who account for 90% of our comments! Greensboro readers, a little feedback goes a long way in sustaining our efforts!