Patio Blooms

Aww Mondays…Cocker Soccer

Monday’s Music Moves Me

It’s free choice week at 4M so I am going to relive part of my 60’s experience. When I came home from Vietnam the Hippie Movement was in full swing here in the U.S. There was a genre of rock music that came to be known as psychedelic or acid rock. It was influenced by a drug known as LSD. Bands that came out of this time period were Steppenwolf, Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin, Emerson/Lake&Palmer, Cream, Grateful Dead, Blue Oyster Cult, and a host of others. I took a portion of the money that I had saved while in the service, actually almost all of it, and bought a component stereo system. A component stereo was a system in which each piece was purchased separately and could be from different manufacturers. I had a tuntable (for playing vinyls), an amplifier/tuner, a pair of speakers with tweeters, mid-range and 12″ air suspension bass, and last but far from least, a reel to reel tape deck. The sound from my system could rattle the walls and make the earth move. So what was I listening to? First up was Steppenwolf. Their most famous song, “Born to be Wild” was an anthem for the counter culture and was featured in the movie “Easy Rider”, starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and the guy wearing the gold football helmet is none other than Jack Nicholson. Easy Rider was his break-out role.

Nearly all of us listened to Led Zeppelin and their first major hit was “Whole Lotta Love”.

Another group that spawned a rock icon was the group Cream. Jack Bruce on bass guitar, Ginger Baker on drums and none other than Eric Clapton playing lead guitar and singing lead vocals. Their first and biggest hit was Sunshine of Your Love. Internal squabbles, drugs and alcohol, contributed to the demise of this group and they each went their separate ways to form their own careers.

The hardest rockin’ female of the day was Janis Joplin. She was the epitome of the “Hippie Chick”. Her life was cut short by bad decisions with drugs and alcohol, but her talent was undeniable.

Probably the second most famous female vocalist of the day was Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane. This group came out of San Francisco, which was ground zero for the whole hippie counter culture movement of the day.

One thing you will notice about these groups, nearly everyone of them made an appearance at the greatest rock concert of all time, Woodstock. Well, there you have it, the hippie side of my music tastes from the 60’s. Have a blessed week.

Texas Hill Country – Part II

Last week I shared photographs from a road trip my wife and I took into Texas Hill Country to see the wildflowers in bloom. The adventure took us into a number of smaller towns and cities in the central part of the state. A few of these municipalities were county seats, that is, the place of the county government. Besides wildflowers, these Texas towns are famous for their courthouses. Most are built out of Texas limestone and are beautiful pieces of architecture set in the rugged landscape.

Llano, TX

Marble Falls, TX

Johnson City, TX

 

Waco, TX

Of course, if there is a county courthouse, there must be one of the original Texas “bed & breakfast” places that is by invitation only…the county jail.

These structures were built with the same flair for design as their courthouse counterpart. All  of these structures were built between 1875 & 1899. It is not unusual for the daytime temperature in hill country to reach 100 degrees in the summer and there is no shade, so these little architectural jewels were not some place you would want to spend time for violation of the law. Have a blessed week.

During our recent Texas road trip, my wife and I spent a day in Waco. Waco, TX has become famous as the home of HGTV “Fixer Upper” stars Chip and Joanna Gains. One of their projects was a retail complex called “The Silos”. It is an interesting tourist destination, but honestly, there is much more to see and do in Waco, TX. There are beautiful buildings everywhere in the downtown area just waiting to be photographed and, if you know me by now, you know that I was more than happy to pick up the camera and snap a few images.

Okay, here is the obligatory ” Magnolia Silos” photo. There is a store with home decor, a bakery, and a multitude of food trucks on site. There is also a central gathering area for sitting and relaxing. Even though we visited on a Tuesday around noon, the place was very busy. I cannot imagine the week-end crowds. Okay, let’s move on.

Usually it’s proper to save the best for last, but I fell in love with this restored service station. It was built in 1929 and behind the gas pumps and office are five service bays. Two brothers bought the property in the 80’s and restored it so they could just hang out and work on their own cars.

There was a time when a church looked like a church. This is First Baptist Church Waco, TX. It sits on a corner lot and the entrance is flanked by two walls of stained glass. I would love to go inside and photograph all of the stained glass in this place of worship.

Just a few blocks away from the Baptist Church is this Methodist place of worship. Along with stained glass, cast stone was a featured material in church architecture at one time.

This is a small courtyard entry into another church. You can see the craftsmanship and attention to detail in every aspect of the construction. Stepping away from religious architecture, Waco has some marvelous homes.

This incredible residence has been a temporary dorm for Baylor University, a bed and breakfast, and a wome’s drug rehabilitation dorm. It was built in 1910 and is 10,000 sq. ft. of living space plus a three car garage with quarters above. Just across the street…

stands this amazing residence. This home was completed in 1891 and is an example of Shingle Style architecture which was rarely seen in the south at the time. The exterior wood and brick were locally produced products. Stunning is the only word that comes to mind when you see this home.

We spent most of the day in Waco and, as you can see, there is plenty to see besides “The Silos”.  It was a Happy Tuesday behind the camera for me. Have a blessed week.

 

 

Aww Monday

Naps are always better with a buddy.

Monday’s Music Motivates Me

Let’s face it some music just motivates us to dance, even if the results are not pretty. Some music invites and motivates us to sing along, even though we can’t carry a tune. Many of us prefer some sort of music in the background of our lives when we are doing things we enjoy. I like to draw, even though I don’t do it much anymore. As an architect, I used to draw for a living, but much of that drawing was technical and precise images that guided contractors how parts of a building should go together. Occasionally I would sit down and just sketch something for my own amusement. I have always had music playing when I am drawing. The music may come from any number of genres, but lately I have been drawn to the blues and some of the classic country tunes.

Not long after retirement I took an interest in Zentangles. I had no idea what a Zentangle was until I saw them posted on Pinterest. I spent a few days working on them and I still do one from time to time. They are relaxing and help clear the mind.

Zentangles can be as simple or as complicated as the artist chooses. They can be random, symmetrical, or completely non geometric. They can be color or black and white. Personally I prefer B&W.

I still like to vignette sketch and I am going to start doing more of that later this year. I have a major (for me) landscape project to do very soon so, plants have been on my mind.

I use a combination of ink pens, color markers and color pencils for these types of sketches. I guess that makes them mixed media. They take anywhere from ten to twenty minutes to produce.

 

What about the music you ask! Well I do like blues and country for these moments. First up is possibly the best blues guitarist working today. Joe Bonamassa has been playing since he was four years old and he is a genius with strings.

Bonnie Raitt combines the best of everything I like about music. She’s a little bit country, blues, rock, and folk. She has a sound all of her own and she can tell a story with the lyrics.

When legends get together on stage, magic happens. If I could only draw the way these guys can make music. Have a blessed week.

The past couple of weeks you have been viewing pre-scheduled posts while my wife and I took a ten day road trip to the hill country of central Texas.  The purpose of the trip was to view the wild blue bonnets in bloom this time of year and photograph other interesting things. Spoiler alert, there will be more than one post about this trip. We left our home in Northwest Arkansas on a Monday morning and traveled 417 miles to Hillsboro, Texas. The next morning our adventure began as we drove through  Killene, Kerrville, Lampasas, Burnet, Marble Falls, Johnson City and back to Marble Falls to spend the night. Each of these towns are small, unique, and a treat to visit. While in Johnson City we visited a part that provided the best display and easiest to photograph blue bonnets that we would encounter on the entire trip. Here are a few of the images.

Aww Monday

That was delicious!

 

Monday’s Music Moves Me

There has been a lot going on around here and I will post images later. We took a 10 day road trip to the Texas Hill Country. This time of year parts of Texas burst into bloom with  blue bonnets, Indian paintbrush and other wild flowers so my wife and I took a road trip in which we drove around 1500 miles in ten days and just enjoyed the scenery. More about that in an upcoming post.

Okay this week is a “Your Choice” week and 4M so I have decided to do a belated Easter celebration post. In all of Christianity there are two major events that are identified with the faith, celebrating the birth of Christ at Christmas and celebrating His resurrection on Easter. Yesterday was Resurrection Sunday and I have selected a few songs that celebration the power of Christ to forgive sin, overcome the grave and prepare a place for all believers to spend eternity with the Savior.

Regardless of the world view that we may have of ourselves, scripture tells us that all of us have sinned and are unworthy of entering heaven. The penalty for our condition is death, that is an eternal separation from our Creator when we leave this life and step into eternity.  These truths are found in Romans 3:23 and Romans 6:23. 2 Peter 2:9 tells us that this situation is not God’s will, “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” This is the very reason Christ was born, lived, was crucified and rose from the dead. Christ and Christ alone has provided us with the only alternative to an eternity of spiritual death. We must acknowledge our current situation, realize that we are in need of a Savior, confess that Christ is that Savior and ask Him to forgive us and provide us with the gift of salvation. Here are a few songs that celebrate that gift.

 

 

Soccer is a Contact Sport

 

 

Aww…Monday’s

“I need a belly rub in the worst way.”

Monday’s Music Moves Me

The theme for this week at 4M is to feature instruments that made an impression on you and that can include a vocal instrument. I mentioned in an earlier post that there was a time in pop music that instrumentals made the top 40 charts. One of the first songs that I remember really impressing me was the “Twangy Guitar” of Duane Eddy and the song, Rebel Rouser. The video I have chosen includes a bonus song, “Ramrod”. You can hear the essence of early rock and roll in these songs.

The early 60’s gave us two new sounds, the British Invasion and Surf Music. While the Beach Boys were the kings of surf, one instrumental made it to the charts…Wipe Out. The song featured two instruments that move any rock ‘n roll enthusiast, drums and guitar. No garage band was worth it’s pay unless they had a song that featured a drum solo, but the Ventures took it to the next level and…look, it’s a drum duet.

While this song features a typical guitar bridge in the middle, it was the opening notes from the classic Hammond B3 organ that got you out of your seat and on to the dance floor. Post game dances in the high school gym were a regular part of Football Friday Nights in the ’60’s and the bands had to have that Hammond B3 and must play an extended arrangement of Louie, Louie of at least 10 minutes. It was a sock hop anthem. For those of you who may be wondering what is a sock hop, the gym floors were maple wood basketball courts and the school officials didn’t want dirt and grime from street shoes damaging the finish. So, you had to remove your shoes when entering the gymnasium for the “Sock Hop”. You’re welcome.

Staying “lost in the sixties” for my last instrumental I will feature a rock music legendary guitar player. The single biggest event in the history of rock ‘n roll was Woodstock. Billed as three days of peace, love and music, some the the greatest bands in rock ‘n roll got their first major public exposure here. One group featured a guitar player that has become an icon in rock/blues circles and is still performing better than ever. The group bore his name, “Santana”. Have a blessed week. Rock on!