Cold Hands, Warm Heart?

Yes, there have been wind-chill warnings,

but it's not nearly as bad as it could be

(or probably will get).

Both ends of my commute were bright

and clear, with the morning sun peeping its

delicate pink self from behind

the downtown buildings.

Then, this afternoon, someone had loosed

a colorful array of Mylar balloons,

a flash of rainbow that reached for the sky,

then, withered from the cold, 
they huddled in a tree.

I don't like being cold. My family did not have

central heating in our home until I was

in middle school. 

During the winters, I was always cold. 

I would huddle under a quilt, tucked

around me to create a cocoon of warmth.

I did not leave it until the next morning when

I'd run, shivering, downstairs to stand by

the coal-fired stove that my father had stoked

just before my brother, sister, and I got

up to get ready for school.

Now long grown, I still don't like the winter chill, 

and wrap up on the couch under a quilt 

to watch TV, my little cat

curled into tight wad beside my head.
I negotiate with myself about what I will do -
Get up and make breakfast? Get dressed?
Take out the trash?
I'm plotting a series of drawings.
How am I going to start these drawings
without getting cold feet?
I picture myself in the process of making them,
but, dammit, I can't figure out how to do it
without getting paint on my quilt.

Dunno ...

This solitary stem is growing in a patch of 

black mulch near a downtown bus stop.

It has a homely character all its own: scraggly

fronds reaching skyward give it an

odd beauty, a summer version of Charlie Brown's

little Christmas tree standing proudly in

the otherwise vacant bit of earth.

Sunny on a Cold Day

The little cacti, sitting on the window sill 

of a downtown office, seemed to smile at the morning sun. 

They and their colorful pots contrasted brightly

with the bare branches and moribund 

flowers, brown in their beds just outside the window. 

Hosta Situation

As the season begins to turn to autumn, 

the hosta browns showing its ribs.

Whether its shade-loving leaves were burned 

by the sun, I don't know,

but it looks as though its edges 

were seared by heat, not cold,

as it turns in on itself,

and bows to the coming frosts.

Bummer: Swimmers ...

 ... Beached.

It doesn't look it, but the water in this section 

of the Riviera Club pool is three feet deep.

When I got off the bus at the club's entrance, I felt

light raindrops on my face. I looked west,

towards the Speedway area and the clouds were

dark, filled with rain. I remembered "Indy 500"

telecasts from years ago, when the announcers would

have occasion to say, "It's raining in Terre Haute,"

about 70 miles away, and know we had about 

an hour before the front reached us.

Saturday morning, as I walked up the drive,

the clouds were in Speedway, only about 

five minutes from the pool. The shower 

turned into a nice thunderstorm, 

trapping about a dozen people,

who're not ordinarily averse to being wet,

under the veranda, away from flashes of lightning

and thunder. For about an hour folks chatted, then went 

their separate ways, some to find an indoor pool, 

others to wait until Monday afternoon.

Sorta Straight and Very Crooked

Okay, so I'm just waiting for the bus to work, standing near the corner 

of  Indiana Avenue and Dr.Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive.

The day has brought the city a beautiful sunrise, but I can't really 

see it where I'm standing. I'm looking around for something that might

make a decent picture. I look up to the the telephone lines,

running more or less straight, contrasted with the tree branches,

growing towards the light. There it is, my picture. 

I just wish more of the red in the berries could be seen.

Traffic is headed into town at about a quarter of eight,

making an angled turn south from MLK Drive onto West Street.

The tall building in the center is "Big Blue," the JW Marriott

Hotel that opened almost a year ago. The building

is covered in blue glass that catches and reflects the sky

in such a way as to always make the building interesting

to look at, as though it were a painting.

Rainy Day/Green and Black

Other than bringing added moisture to the plants,

 rain also intensifies their color and brings out 

the detail of their edges.

Horses With Jobs: Wedding Bells

On my way home from the fair last weekend,

I looked up to see a trio of white horse-drawn carriages,

each being pulled by what looked like horses that

were Clydesdales, or relations thereof.

As it turned out, they were on their way to pick up

a wedding party from the Capitol Building

just across the street. The first carriage, fashioned 

after a Cinderella coach, carried the bride and groom with,

I'm assuming, the maid and matron of honor.

The second and third carried the bridesmaids and

groomsmen, respectively.

Congratulations, Happy Couple!

I hope your lives together bring you joy

and growing love, as big and

beaming as your smiles.

Morning Quiet

Early Tuesday morning, while waiting for the bus on a busy street,

I found two scenes of quiet and calm. As the traffic rumbled

towards downtown, one man found a bit of peace

rowing on the Central Canal, while another walked

towards town, bordered by a row of sunlit trees.

Red Dust and Marge Simpson

The brick pavers on the sidewalks of the Monument Circle 

area of downtown Indy add warmth and relieve the otherwise cold

gray appearance of the surrounding buildings. A large expanse

of these pavers was added last summer along Washington Street and

have added to the beauty of the restored storefronts. 

Every once in a while, however, the pavers need 

to have maintenance work done to replace any broken 

bricks and to rebuild any of their base layer that has become 

loosened due to the upheavals caused by weather.

Last Monday, I found a group of the maintenance men working 

at the intersection of Pennsylvania and Ohio Streets, 

some cutting and fitting the pavers, others sweeping and 

brushing brick dust into the seams between 

the bricks. 

One of the men had his hair wrapped in blue cloth to keep 

it from becoming soiled from the brick dust. He reminded me of

someone, whose name I couldn't recall at the time.

Marge Simpson, perhaps?

Textured Tuesday: L.S. Ayres Building

The L.S. Ayres building, located at the corner of

Washington and Meridian Streets in Indianapolis, is like an

old friend to me. Now an anchor of the Circle Centre Mall, the store

was my first employer when I moved to Indianapolis.
'Though out of business for years, due to being swallowed
up and killed off by big, corporate chains, the
building remains a beloved icon to many people
in the city, myself included.

Sunday morning, I was on my way to another event

inside the mall when I happened to look up at

the building. It was like seeing something for the first time;

yes, I knew all those decorative details were there, but

suddenly, there seemed to be an awful lot

of them in one small area.

And why had I never before seen the way

those bricks are layed at angles, giving the building

surface added dimension and definition? 

Carnage!

The 2012 National Championships for members 

of the National Robotics League were held this weekend 

in Indianapolis. The league focuses on students, 

from middle school through college, and helps them form ties with 

industry groups who not only assist the students with materials to field

competitive teams, but make them aware of career paths available to them.

However, I was still surprised to see the young man above, 14 years old,

driving his high school's 'bot in the competition. Mayhem was involved. 

The arena was strewn with the limbs, parts and shards of metallic

flesh from the little machines, but each driver was focused on the battle,

coolly steering and "strategizing" for some advantage over

the competition.

The bouts, fast and vicious, are held in an enclosed arena made

of metal and plexiglass. They need to be, as sparks flew from the metallic 

hides of the combatants, 'bots were thrown into the roof of the cage, tumbling 

and shedding parts as they hit the arena's walls. They whirred, they growled,

they sawed, cut at and prodded each other. Mercilessly. 

Between bouts, the teams worked on their 'bots, diagnosing 

and repairing damage and shortcomings, all under the supervision 

of an adult coach, usually one their teachers from school. 

I was really glad to see several girls among the team members, 

one of whom was proud to be the person assigned to bring

her team's 'bot to the arena for its bout, smiling happily

for her teacher who was taking pictures in the bleachers.

See the shiny bits reflecting off the carapace of the 'bot on the left?

Those are scars, scratches, and gouges received in battle,

often from rivals like the 'bot on the right, which has just been 

upended and, unable to right itself, "shiny scars" won the day.

There is a referee assigned to the ring who retrieves the 'bots.

 He handles them with caution in the form of a long stick, 

which he uses to scoot the little machines 

to their owners, who know its features and weapons.

He then sweeps up stray 'bot parts and cleans 

the arena of metal shards. 

Each 'bot weighs no more than 15 pounds, but

is loaded with electronic gear and weapons that whir

at high speeds, spin at velocities so high you can hear

the spin, as well as the screeching of metal

as the 'bots come into contact with each other.

Sparks fly!

Trophies are awarded!

And the NRL's website is cool, witty and well-designed.

Two Can Play ...

Waiting for the Bus, 7:50 a.m., Wednesday May 1st

The fog-shrouded skyline yesterday morning took

the city back to a time long before there was

ever a "skyline." The only buildings likely to have

been peeping above the tree line were the church spires.

This morning, the buildings have dropped their

shrouds, retaining the gray, still blocking out

much of the sun. But the morning's

golden light still bends around the granite, still sneaks

between the limestone blocks, providing this

runner a well-lit path as he gets in one last run before

the Indy Mini-Marathon this coming Saturday. 

Waiting for the Bus, 7:50 a.m., Thursday May 2nd

Same Time, Last Year

Due to a small medical issue, I've had to stay pretty 

close to home this week, so my camera and 

I haven't been able to wander much.

This will be remedied within the next day or so.

Meanwhile, here are a few pictures I took

at this same time last year during a walk downtown.

The top picture was taken underneath

one of the flowering trees near the bus stop 

at the Federal Court House.

The picture above shows the flowering trees 

around the Indiana War Memorial. In the background,

from right to left, are the Baker & Daniels law offices,

AT&T buildings make up the next two, while

the fourth building is a Sheraton hotel. 

 This restored, red-painted brick home is 

on a side street off Alabama Street, just north 

of the downtown area. I was tempted

to replace the light fixture on its pole, but was 

unable to reach it from outside the fence.

Waiting

While waiting for the bus this evening 

outside the Madame Walker Theatre, I took 

the opportunity to take a picture of the red rectangles 

painted on a nearby garage. Of course, the wall 

reminds me of big abstract paintings, 

but the name of the artist eludes me right now.

Freshly Green

There are four of these trees, a pair of each posted 

at the front corners of the Federal Court House. 

While I love the undulating lines of their trunks,

I don't generally take their pictures because

of the busy-ness taking place in the background.

However, the late afternoon sunlight

reflected so beautifully off the trunks, I had

to make an exception.

Fresh leaves have started to open, adding their 

verdant strokes of color to the branches.

In a few weeks, the trees will be full of pale 

pink flowers which will eventually shower 

the surrounding grounds and passersby

with their tiny petals.

Filling A Hole

One day last month, I was downtown for an appointment 

and found I had some extra time to look for photos. At the time,

the city was more active than usual, preparing for 

the Super Bowl. This group of men was working to fill an area

where some duct work had been repaired. 

The truck driver was carefully spotting his truck 

so as to better aim the concrete into the hole, with the crew

men working to quickly spread the concrete mixture

around and amid the new pipes and base layers.

A Molar Grid

Graffiti reminding me of giant, evil molars have appeared

at various places around town. Had the tagger intended

to leave biting commentary? 

Otherwise, the varied sizes and colors of the bricks

provide the interest in this wall.

In other places, the hidden drunks would have left

their empty bottles shattered in the gutter. Here,

they were capped and left on the limestone sill,

a lonely, empty couple.

Generally, the alleyways of Indy seem to be 

comparatively tidy, with some of them actually being 

little side streets, left over from earlier centuries.

This one may seem longer because of the 

slanted lines of the parking garage 

sweeping into the distance. 

Brick Mitten

I try to have my little Canon with me at all times. 

On the occasions I've forgotten it, I've found myself reaching 

into my pocket, then patting all my pockets 

like a driver who's mislaid her keys.

Among the best times to have my camera are when I find

unintended art, such as this patch of bared brick.

The building where I saw it is undergoing a remodeling

and renovation, which evidently includes repairs

to its stucco surface.

I loved the subtle traces of the brick 

underlying the beige coloration of the cement, 

the way the white garage door balances 

the red shape of the mitten. And that one red

brick anchors the mitten, giving it

the weight to stand with the white square.

Super Traffic

Just outside the mile square area, the main shopping 

and activity areas of downtown Indianapolis, 

one can find all day parking for the comparatively

 modest fee of $4.00, while the same sum 

will only get you three hours at one 

of the parking garages closer in.

Traffic in the downtown area was congested 

earlier this week, primarily due to detours 

for construction activities for the Super Bowl

venues south of Washington Street between

Capitol and Pennsylvania Streets.

The crowds last night and today at Super Bowl Village

were happy and congenial. People of all ages

came down to participate in the activities

and to see the sights.