First Friday, Plus One Month, And Five Days

My hometown is artsy. I blame smotherhood for having to miss out on the abundance of Portland arts but I did manage a mini-trek out for August 2009's First Friday Art Walk primarily for the opportunity to check out the work of two old and dear friends!

Our first stop was the Whitney Art Works for Rebecca Fitzpatrick's exhibit of her latest work Thread. I hope she'll forgive me, I took these with my old camera which is 100 percent the reason I have yet to make this post until now...













Becky likes old publications, and hands. The chain below is quintessential Becky, it's meticulously made out of months of fingy-work and very old print. It is my belief that too few people on this planet know what Becky can do with some glue, some time, and an empty PBR can. In the weeks following the opening this rope grabbed my eye from the sidewalk on two harried, unexpected walk-bys and neither time it failed to give me big smiles. Old times are good times...and this is one long thread of well-engineered paper rope!





After a few of these looks...



...we were back on the street, headed toward Sanctuary Art Gallery where even older friend (try First Grade Catholic School) Michelle Souliere was showing some luscious black velvet paintings alongside the work of other local black velvetists. (Again...apologies for the camerawork.)













We all enjoyed some delightful summer evening chit-chat, I have deep thanks for Becky, Michelle, and so many others for their contributions to our community. I am so excited for the privilege to raise my little guy in a town with so many artistic and cultural offerings, we hope First Friday at The Children's Museum isn't far in our future.

Please click any photo for more detail.

All these lovely tokens

Today Jimmy took a business class seat aboard Mumma's Heel-Toe Express to fetch something local for dinner at The Fishermen's Net.


The Fishermen's Net's new Forest Ave billboard...if I recall correctly the previous one was an old blue pickup. 'Lobser' is cheap these days.

When we got home Wally was making Iced Mint Leaf Tea.



And few hours later our End of Summer dinner looked like this.


Haddock, steamers, our garden beans, and homemade iced mint leaf tea.

Jimmy had leftover spaghetti. =D

I also read the best quote about September posted by fellow Facebookian, Andrea M:

By all these lovely tokens

September days are here,

With summer's best of weather,

And autumn's best of cheer.

Helen Hunt Jackson

I was just saying to Wally how September is so weird, it makes me anxious how it's not really summer, not really fall, you cling to warm days knowing they're in short supply, you know what's coming (WINTER!!), you never know what to wear, the month is just suspending there with no festivities except for the first day of school. I felt a little guilty for thinking September was just unsettling, or 'summer's afterthought' at best, so a big token of gratitude is owed to Andrea and Helen for squaring away this monthumental problem for me. I now know that September is to be cherished. Thanks, ladies!

New Playgrounds, Old Spirits

It was such a nice day we couldn't pass up an opportunity to check out the new Goodwin Playspace that opened this week at Deering Oaks. Lotsa munny and planning went into the playground which dons the name of the engineer of great city parks, but at first sight I was like "????" My eyes were wide and ready for a warm woodsy wonderland, but instead were forced into a pinchy wince from the visual likeness of a prehistoric rock quarry.










I was a bit disappointed, it just didn't look finished. I'd driven by several times on 295 thinking that it was a matter of time before they filled in the gray with woodsery and greenery, but $325,000 later it looks like they chose not to. Ohhhhh well, it's not like Jimmy doesn't like digging into dirt so we made the best of it.
After some smiles I decided the playground wasn't so bad afterall.







On the way out we revisited the woodsiness that we love about Deering Oaks.









We fed ducks. They did this:



Foolishly I figured our closest route home would be to follow the duckpond through the wading pool but Jimmy wasn't having any drive-bys so it was Off with the shirt and Off with the pants. No swimtrunks, no problem, we don't leave the house without sunblock and extra dipeys, or pants.





Once he was out I took this photo to retract myself from the PANTS WHINING.





And of course, we waved 'hi' to Slugger when we passed him on the way home.



In fact, we walked by a lot of great Portland designs today and it is well appreciated that the Goodwin Playspace sign, at least, pays tribute to the spirits behind this great city.

The Vast Array of Sculpture in Libbytown

It was such a picture-perfect day when I took some photos for my 20 Things To Do in Libbytown post that I couldn't help noticing trends around the neighborhood. For starters, there's lots of sculptures!

There's plant pots.



Brighton Avenue Brick Colonial




There's circular sculptures.


Edwards Street

There's municipal sculptures,




Portland Water District's emblem of pride




Educator's memorial behind West School

Spiritual sculptures,


Beautiful angel in front of beautiful Bradley Street home


This peace sign lights up at night!

And religious sculptures.


St. Pat's Church




Former St. Pat's School, now St. Pat's Condos. Where's St. Pat?


Oh, there he is, 1/4 mile across the street at St. Pat's Church...silly roaming statue.



There's lions,






Elephants,



And bears! Oh my!




Johnson's Sporting Goods

There's the mean sculptures,



Hiss! On Massachusetts Street

And the benign.


So plastic, so peaceful



Some parts of architecture,



Jimmy luvs the bumpy terrain of bulging-root brick sidewalks

And last but not least, the eco-sculpture that dots our streets every Thursday morning.


Portland's blue trash bags and recycling bins



Even Libbytown Dumpster-, er, EcoSculpture-Diving has its rewards

You never know what you'll find in Libbytown!