This has been one of the wettest & coldest Springs I can remember. People are still wearing jackets & I often think about taking gloves. The heat has been turned off in my building, so I've gotten out my flannel pajamas &  blankets again. All of the rain has been good for the seasonal flowers & trees, the plants are quite lush this year and filled with color. The sky is often dramatic with the rain clouds & sun. This is the locust tree outside my window on a recent evening. I really hope it warms up soon. Brrrr!  

  On Saturday I was out doing errands & as I drove past the Unitarian Church, I saw stuff sitting on their front lawn, but soon realized it wasn't a yard sale, it was a display called "Eyes Wide Open" put on by the  afsc organization . I stopped to have a closer look.
 
                 
   The main portion of the exhibit is rows of combat boots, each with a name &  photo of an Ohio  soldier killed in Iraq tied to the laces. Each one was someone's child, sibling, lover, friend. Some of the boots are scuffed, some newer and the rows look like crosses at Arlington Cemetery. I started to cry as I walked  through the lines  of them.  Next to the boots was concentric circles of regular shoes around a tree, these represent Iraqi  civilians killed. The little kid shoes really gets to you. Behind the whole display is a wire framework with strips of white cloth, each with the name a person killed. Strings of tiny bells blow in the wind with the cloth, reminding me of Buddhist ceremonies where bells are rung at funerals.
    It was all very moving and I was having trouble taking pictures, because I couldn't see through the tears. Strange to think something so simple as a bunch of shoes could be so powerful. It was the perfect thing to do for Memorial Day.
   
             

  A friend recently began a job where he tests the waters of Lake Erie for bacteria levels to make certain it's safe for swimmers. Imagine my surprise when I opened my front door this morning to see a large photo of him on the front page of the Cleveland Plain Dealer in an article about water pollution. What a thrill to see someone I know headlining the local paper. It's kinda big to post, so here's the link-
http://www.cleveland.com/frontpage/wide/index.ssf?saturday.html
   The photo is taken from a weird angle, so it has an El Greco effect, but it's still a treat to see him taking up most of the top half of the page and for doing something good too. There's a smaller picture inside of him writing down the  data.  He looks very scientific and I am very pleased on his behalf.

 The Nature Fest went well 2 weeks ago. Though the weather was rather chilly, thousands of folks attended the 2 day celebration of Spring in Ohio; with wildflower walks, birding hikes, live animal programs, lectures, etc.  Not everyone made it into the room with the art show, but  there was still dozens of dogs & plenty of people coming through. A person dressed as a frog clumped about, a friend stopped by, I got to pet a baby crocodile & I got lots of compliments on my display(above, the white screen is on the table behind me).
    While I knew two of my fellow artists, the rest were new, but we quickly built a rapport.There was carved gourds, photographs, hand turned birdhouses, and lovely watercolors. The lady next to me did drawings on tree fungus, large toadstools that she sketches on with a wood burning tool and highlights with white Prismacolor pencil. The blue jays below was my favorite.
   Sales
were slow, those who had been in it before said last year was more
profitable, but the atmosphere was great, all of the people very nice
& I still had fun. It was a positive experience and I hope to be in it next year.