Thursday 13: My Town

This is my time of year. The greens and pinks of the universe remind me that things are unfolding in their own time, as they should be, and I'd best be both observant and appreciative or I'll miss it all.

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Add my new camera to the mix and I'm wandering around in search of simple pleasures. The following shots were all taken within a mile of my house. I've never lived in a semi-rural town before. I moved here three years ago. The community is made up of colleges and farms, professional and working class folks, solid buildings and plenty of open space.

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For example: 1. Forgive me for starting with my new mailbox. It is sturdy and wide and protective and receptive and when I see it outside my kitchen door, I feel as though I and the mail are both getting a fresh start. It's been a hell of year or more for me, a wild roller coaster ride of emotions I can't say I've handled very well, and I guess I kind of identify with the new mailbox.

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2. Hahaha, the kitchen window tells all. This part of the world is famous for its asparagus, harvested just this week and placed in a little water to keep fresh. Plus one vine grown tomato. And then there's my favorite card from my pal Studio Lolo, and another from my dear JB. And far to the right, a rubbery picture of Donald Duck, with exactly the same pouty and indignant expression I have when I am pouty and/or indignant.

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3. And just below the kitchen window, this note greeted me when I came home from work. I like nothing better than having a local friend who knows it's okay to steal my dog for noble purposes.

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4. It's a light purple azalea dropping its flowers like confetti. How beautiful is that? .

5. Two rhubarb plants came with the house. Their leaves will each grow to almost two feet wide, and the "pod" in the middle is a mystery to me. Does anybody know what it will do or look like? And another question: will this be the year I actually make rhubarb pie?
. 6. This is the landscaping to the left of my local bank's parking lot. That's right: the bank arranged for a bit of beauty beside its parking lot. It's a small regional bank, and I suspect that's a factor in a business taking the time and interest to pretty up the community.
.7. Okay, so not everything survives. Normally I hate dead plants and shrubs. But I think this row has a certain character to it--kind of like tolerance for diversity and communal support of the less fortunate.
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8. Here's the local hardware store. I've never stopped by and not found what I needed. When I first moved to town, I saw this building and realized I was indeed in small town America.
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9. And here's a corner of the town center. My father was a mason and bricklayer and I always think of him whenever I see a brick building. He used to tell me, "I'm not like some guy who paints walls: my work will last forever." I think my dad would like this building, and so many more like it scattered all around town.
. 10. Ta Da! What's a small town without a barber shop?
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11. And a stunning church?
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12. And a house just about secluded by towering trees?
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13. And a statue of a proud woman, whose name and story I cannot tell you because I only discovered her today on my drive home. I love the way she holds her hand: that's how I know she's proud.
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One of these days I'll include more of an urban "city" view of this place I live in Western Massachusetts in the Pioneer Valley in New England on the East Coast of the USA. For now though, you can be sure I am reveling in the season of Spring, shaking my head sometimes at all I fail to understand, but thankful for the beauty of it all.
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With love from

kj babe (smile)