Greensboro Daily Photo

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Here you see a photo of some of the first fruits of our backyard-garden labor. We make it a point to plant edibles (almost) exclusively.  Here is our first tomato, some hot peppers, blueberries, and rattlesnake green beans. The purple flowers are what the beans look like before maturing. Next, although not edible, is a yellow marigold. We surround our garden with marigolds as they seem to help keep the bugs out. In addition, we have okra, cucumbers, eggplant, basil, lavender, mint, lemon verbena, figs, and Swiss chard.

In Greensboro this summer, we first experienced excessive rain. In the last several days, the sun has been relentless. Therefore, gardening has been challenging.  Presently, the blueberries are really prolific and the rattlesnake green beans are starting to produce enough beans to feed us. They are a very tasty pole bean. We like to take a picture every year around the Fourth of July to document our garden successes. Are you planting anything? How is it growing?

 

Love is All Around

This photo, from the Summer Solstice Celebration, evokes the 1960's song by the Troggs, "Love is All Around." 

 "I feel it in my fingers, I feel it in my toes. Well love is all around me, and so the feeling grows. It's written in the wind, it's everywhere I go. So if you really love me, come on and let it show"

Here we see an arboretum full of people letting love show. Here we see a man TIRELESSLY blowing bubbles for the children around him. As soon as he would suspend a giant bubble in the air, a child would gleefully burst it. Also, the man in the striped shirt would put his daughter's head into the bubble, it would pop, and she would giggle. The little boy in the tie-dyed T shirt could pop bubbles faster than we could snap photos. Truly, love was all around. 

The July Theme Day theme for the City Daily Photo Community is, REFLECTION. First, we are reflecting on summer fun and the profound sense of community felt that day. Second, we're admiring the brief reflection sizzling on the surface of the soap bubble.

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants 

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!

 

Reflecting on Greensboro's Past and Present

Go Greensboro Grasshoppers, so says John Klopp at his State Farm Insurance Office in downtown Greensboro. This reflection represents the view out John's window. The window reflects the most recognizable building downtown-- the JP building. From the parking lot, you can see Newbridge Park Stadium.

Since we're posting this for our friends at Weekend Reflection, we decided to take this opportunity to reflect and be thankful for the week. We're sharing David Hoggard's post on Greensboro's 1926 World War Memorial Stadium, that, to some, has outlived its usefulness . Hoggard quotes Edwin Jeffress (then part owner of one of the local newspapers and Greensboro's mayor in 1926 at the stadium's dedication). The inspirational words explain the name, World War Memorial Stadium.

"And so the stadium has been built by children's and widows' and wives' and rich men's wealth. It is here for the use of the coming generations; the soldier boys said they wanted no hollow granite, no useless monument to decorate our street corners, even no statuary or brass to remind us of those who have passed along after doing life's full duty, but they wanted something that would be useful; that would help develop mind and body; that would in this way be a perpetual memorial to those who have passed..., that those of us who follow should use our best efforts to make ourselves physically fit to answer any emergency... and when the call to duty comes, answer with a clear, strong voice, 'We are ready to do our bit.'

Thank you David for sharing the quote. This would be a good quote for public school children to memorize.

 

...In with the New.... Newbridge Bank Park

Yesterday, we featured War Memorial Stadium, Greensboro's premiere stadium for 79 years. However, since 2005, Newbridge Bank Park has been Greensboro's destination for baseball. The new stadium has contributed significantly to the rebirth of downtown. From baseball games to fireworks displays to scout camp outs to evenings on the playground just inside the gate, Newbridge Bank Park is fun, fun, fun. 

Take me out to the ball game in the new ballpark; but, find a way to keep our vintage gem, War Memorial. To follow up with questions yesterday, World War Memorial Stadium was so named because it was dedicated on the eighth anniversary of Armistice Day (November 11, 1926). See more pictures here.

For the ABC Wednesday crowd, N is for Newbridge and NEW ball park!

 

War Memorial Stadium

War Memorial Stadium, originally designed for football and with a capacity  of 7,500, opened in 1926. Formerly, the Greensboro Bats played minor league baseball here. Spring 2005, the new baseball stadium downtown replaced War Memorial and the Greensboro Grasshoppers replaced the Bats. This change did not come without controversy and opposition. While most Greensboro residents concede that the new stadium was a good economic choice for our city, considerable debate has taken place about the future of the pre-World War II stadium above. Perhaps War Memorial's most ardent supporter and articulate advocate has been local resident David Hoggard. We highly recommend his latest blog entry on the issue. This stadium has so much character from wooden bleachers to little stand-alone ticket huts.  We wanted to photograph this beauty, located at 510 Yanceyville Street, while it is still unchanged. At least it will be immortalized in the movie Leatherheads.

Thanks to the touch of read on the flags, we're sending this out to Ruby Tuesday.

 

Let's Bowl!

Greensboro has some fun bowling alleys that provide a clean, wholesome way to spend time with family and friends. Here we are at the AMF All Star Lanes at the intersection of Holden Road and Spring Garden Street. The guy in the next lane over had better luck (skill) than we did! Bowling alleys have a distinctive muffled sound as the ball meets the pins and cloukkkk, a strike! Then there is the faint, sweet smell of the polish that makes everything shine. 

Bowling has been traced back to the Stone Age. Evidence of bowling was found in an Egyptian tomb dating back to 5,200 BC. Different cultures attach different symbolism to the game. Since it is the Lenten Season, we'll share the fact that in Germany, bowling was introduced to the masses by the monks as a customary test of faith. While not in Greensboro, did you know that there is an International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame? For the Weekend Reflection crowd, see that REFLECTION on the lane?

 

Grand Prix GSO

Grand Prix Greensboro, located near the airport at 302 Gallimore Dairy Road, is open to the public and is loads of fun. Young and old alike can strap on safety gear and race around the indoor track. Grand Prix Kart Racing makes even a mom and pop like us feel like we are NASCAR material. In the photo above, a red flag has been waived because a driver is stuck. As you can see, the other karts, all wait patiently until the path is clear. The fastest lap during our 8-minute session was 23 seconds. Unfortunately, that was not our time! Karting is a great activity, especially in bad weather. We may just book our next birthday party there! 

Happy New Year 2010 for those of you signing on today. This is post #366 and we'll make every effort to bring you a new photo of Greensboro every day in 2010! We've managed to post every day since we began last January 2nd-- even through power outages, funerals, and vacations! As always, WILL WORK FOR COMMENTS!!!

 

Greensboro Country Club Farm Course

After a major redesign and renovation, the Farm Course of the Greensboro Country Club has officially reopened. Here we see golfers out on [re]opening day the other week. The new course is beautiful and said to be amply challenging. Even if you do not belong to GCC, if you are a golfer, Greensboro has plenty of options for golfing-- at all price points!

 

Golf in Greensboro, NC

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.

Greensboro Grasshoppers

NewBridge Bank Park is home of the Greensboro Grasshoppers. The ballpark has been a wonderful addition to downtown Greensboro. Attendance is up this year as families look for fun, affordable ways to have a night out.  The stadium is a photographer's delight. Additionally, the playground area, reminiscent of a scene from "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" keeps children happy. The above view, with the 3 1/2'  cement baseballs, is just outside the main entrance. On Fridays, home games usually end with fireworks. Thanks to YouTube, we can enjoy a Greensboro Grasshoppers fireworks display virtually! 

On an historical note: In the early 2000's, the Greensboro Community had to decide if we wanted to renovate the  War Memorial Stadium. Much nostalgia was attached since War Memoiral, built in 1926, was the oldest minor-league ballpark still in use. In the end, Greensboro elected to build a new stadium and even renamed the mascot-- formerly the Greensboro Bats, now, the Grasshoppers. In the end, even local preservationists conceded that building the new stadium was a wise decision. Here's to a winning season for the Grasshoppers!!!

The Green Bean Coffee House

The Green Bean is a family friendly coffee house at 341 South Elm Street. Some consider The Green Bean the social center of downtown Greensboro.  In this conveniently located coffee shop, you can hold small meetings, access Wi-Fi, enjoy live music, take in the ever-changing art exhibits, play billiards and board games, or simply enjoy a cup of fair-trade coffee. On Saturday, they are open from 8:00 am- 11:00 pm. Today is somewhat quiet; however, last night, they had a couple of fabulous live bands. Currently, in their gallery, they are showing Matthew Mica's photography and paintings by Lisa Woods.

Don't ever stay home alone or bored. Grab a friend and head down to the Green Bean. Sunday brunch seems to be getting a lot of traffic. We just might head on over in the morning! Regarding photography, we love the reflective round mirrors against the blue wall. We shot this picture from the back room near the exit to the patio seating area.

ACC Tournament

Greensboro is home to the headquarters of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The conference was founded in May 1953 in the city. While the schools of the conference are competitive and have produced champions in all intercollegiate sports, basketball has generated some of the nation's most intense rivalries and greatest teams.

The ACC Tournaments were exciting this year as always. Hopefully, you got to watch some of the great basketball. Unfortunately for Greensboro, this year's men's tournament was played in Atlanta. However, the city did host the 2009 Women's ACC Tournament. Here we see a picture of team banners at the Greensboro Coliseum complex. The Coliseum and the ACC will play host for two rounds of this year's men's Division I NCAA Tournament.

The day the idea for the picture came to us, we did not have our camera. Upon returning the next day, cherry blossoms had started blooming. In springtime, nature changes daily! In basketball tournaments, changes are hourly! Congratulations to the ACC Champion Maryland Lady Terrapins and Duke Blue Devils.

                 

The Ultimate Sport

In case you have not heard of ULTIMATE, it is a team sport played with a disc that many refer to as a Frisbee. Players toss the disc to teammates advancing it down the field towards the goal-line. Once a player has control over the disc, a pivot foot must be established, similar to basketball. Picking up your pivot foot results in a travel.  Ultimate players act as their own referees, taking great pride in their sportsmanship -- which is referred to in the community as "Spirit of the Game."

The above photo was taken at a recent Ultimate event held on the intramural fields at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. As you can see, it is not uncommon for teams to be comprised of both men and women of varying ages (from high school to post-collegiate). If you have tremendous stamina and are talented at tossing a disc, it is never too late to play ULTIMATE!