Mystery Revealed

Well, here's the answer to yesterday's mystery: it's a sculpture by artist Taylor Wallace titled "Self Reflection." It's been displayed in the Krutch Park Extension since last year. If you look up through the bottom of the funnel, you'll see refracted reflections of the sky, and yourself. But for those of you who responded, good guesses! It actually does look kind of like a death ray, no? Maybe one day I'll post the death ray self portrait I took last summer.

Sky Blue Sky

Yes, there certainly is the sky. But how do you think I got this shot? Answer tomorrow.

Construction Tunnel

I don't know why this appealed to me - perhaps because of the gentle curve and the night lighting, or maybe it's the half hidden person at the other end. I'm just glad the sidewalk isn't closed by the construction, as is often the case downtown.

Rain Barrel

The Water Quality Forum is raising awareness of water conservation by sponsoring the Rainy Day Brush-Off art contest . Local artists have donated their time and talent to this cause by creating works of art on 55 gallon (208 liter) rain barrels that are being displayed all over town. This is one of my favorites, by local artist Cynthia Markert. These barrels would come in handy today - it's pouring! 

College Town

Well, I didn't get home quite in time to post for Friday, but hey, it's fairly close. So today I give you not only the dangers of swallowing gasoline (not to mention the dangers of gasoline prices  swallowing the contents of our wallets), but also the dangers of grammar. So glad I live near a university that's up to the challenge of guarding against these grammatical errors. This photo was taken on Cumberland Avenue near the university.

Sundown Cycles

Every Thursday, the city closes Union Avenue for the Sundown in the City concert on Market Square. This street then becomes the (unofficial but popular) parking area for motorcycles. I like how they line up so neatly. Are any of you motorcycle enthusiasts?

Dog Lovers

This is another photo I took during the UT Vet School Open House the weekend before last. It's a little blurry, but I liked the interaction between the girl and the bearded collie. This was a "meet the dogs and owners" session held after the Dog Parade, where different breeds were introduced to the audience.  This photo has been on my mind to publish, and I was inspired to do so after seeing Ming's absolutely adorable dog portrait on his blog recently.

For Earth Day

What is the use of a house if you haven't got a tolerable planet to put it on?

-Henry David Thoreau

The Wisteria That Ate Knoxville

Yesterday I showed you some very tiny flowers. Today I'm going to the opposite extreme with an enormous flowering vine. This is the largest tangle of Chinese wisteria that I have seen in town. This wisteria holds court in the not-too-photogenic edge of the parking lot of the Kroger grocery store in the Bearden neighborhood. Chinese wisteria is considered an invasive species in North America; it has no natural insect or fungal enemies here and spreads out of control, as you can see. But the purple blooms are very beautiful.

Bluets

These little harbingers of spring are found throughout the eastern U.S. in forests and meadows. I found these tiny bluets growing in the lawn of the City County Building downtown. I like having wildflowers growing in urban areas.

Balloon Wrangler

T. S. Eliot was right: April is the cruelest month. It poured rain all morning, threatening to cancel the Rossini Festival Italian Street Fair today. And let me tell you, that would be a really big disappointment to cancel a fair that stretched for five blocks, with more than 150 booths and three stages for music. But the rain let up in time to hoist the tricolor balloons - which, as our balloon wrangler's expression shows, is serious business. Oh, but the fair was such fun!

Party Animals

When I saw the panda walking down Market Square this evening, I knew something was up, so naturally I followed him. Turns out, a group of UT students were raising money for endangered species. Other folks seemed to think it was picture-worthy, so I captured them capturing the moment too.

The Sundowners

Sundown In the City, a series of free concerts on Market Square, started their season this evening. People, I just can't describe the thousands of folks that descend on the square for this event every Thursday, so I'm showing you a shot I took tonight from the balcony of the TVA Towers plaza overlooking the square. 

Strolling

It's a perfect day for a stroll around the agriculture campus at the University of Tennessee. This path is near the Animal Sciences building. I love how the light shines through the spring leaves on the trees - it's so serene. I hope your path today is sunny and serene, wherever you are.

Panorama

Well, here's the panorama I promised. You're looking at downtown Knoxville from the south bank of the Tennessee River. The Gay Street Bridge is in the foreground, and it's a beautiful day.

In Tents

I took this quick snap of the Dogwood Festival on Market Square packing up tents yesterday, but the festival continues all over town for the next two weeks with art shows, open gardens, and the dogwood trails through the neighborhoods. I know I haven't shown you much beyond the square and the park for the past few days - there's just been so much going on there lately - but I promise to show you a panorama that is non-square-or-park sometime this week.

Enjoying the Music

Mike T and the Mascot Ramblers entertain a crowd of all ages at the Dogwood Arts Festival. They play classic country music like Hank Williams and Merle Haggard. Yes, I do love me some Merle Haggard. I also love that just changing a few settings on my digital camera takes me from color to black and white! (It's my first digital camera, can you tell?)

Open House

The University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine (or, the Vet School, as it's known around here) had its open house today. This is a photo of the anatomy lab, where they had bones and other items on display for the public. I can't say enough good things about this school. Whenever I step into the lobby of the Small Animal Clinic, my heart seizes up just a little bit - it's the memories of when I was a stressed-out pet owner bringing my ailing animal in for help. The doctors and students at UT always came through for me and my pet. Veterinary medicine is truly both an art and a science - the science of healing the patient, and the art of comforting the patient's owner.

Good News/Bad News

The bad news: severe thunderstorms, high winds, and tornado watch for the Knoxville area this evening. The good news: rain and wind, but no tornado. The bad news: the Dogwood parade was postponed, so no photos. The good news: I went to Oodles wine bar with my sweetie instead.

Getting Ready

The flower beds are freshly mulched and the tents are going up here in Krutch Park, and also on Market Square. The Dogwood Arts Festival officially starts tomorrow. Unfortunately, the weather forecast is calling for rain and colder temperatures. I hope to show you some photos of the Dogwood Parade tomorrow night, unless it gets rained out. Ah, springtime in East Tennessee: if you don't like the weather, just wait five minutes and it will change.

Oh! The Glamour!

So, I was walking down Union Avenue this afternoon, just minding my own business, until I saw this photo shoot in front of the Hotel St. Oliver. Downtown is sooooo glam, darlings. I think I'll see our lady in white very soon in a bridal fashions article.

Redbuds, Blue House

And a bright red truck thrown in for good measure. I was driving along Sutherland Avenue and saw this. The combination of colors just made me happy, so I pulled over and took this photo.

Redbuds Are Blooming

And the dogwoods aren't far behind. These are some redbud trees budding out on the waterfront. Hooray for spring!

Rockin' on a Sunday Afternoon

Knoxville has an abundance of local musical talent of all kinds. Name your favorite kind of music - jazz, blues, rock, country, bluegrass, folk, gospel, classical - you'll probably find someone performing it around town. Today the sun was out, the weather was perfect for an outdoor concert, and I had the great fortune of finding the Rockin' Womyn's Music Festival taking the stage on Market Square. This free festival of female bands is sponsored by the Lambda Student Union of the University of Tennessee. Donations helped raise money for the Knoxville Family Justice Center, which helps victims of domestic abuse.

Loony

I saw this banner hanging in a second story window on Market Square. Not sure I'd want to advertise that.  Actually, it's a banner for a play about author James Agee (who wrote A Death in the Family) by local poet/writer/musician RB Morris.

Still Life With Bike Patrol

The outdoor sculpture exhibit is in place in Krutch Park and ready for the Dogwood Arts Festival next week. I'll show you more of that later. The downtown bike patrol is ready to, um, patrol downtown. I just like the way they lined up as if they were part of the sculpture.

A Walk in the Rain

I think rain is going to be the theme around here for the next few days, but we sure do need it to ease the severe drought that much of the southeastern U.S. has been experiencing. I had a lovely early evening walk down Market Square, the downtown pedestrian plaza. The square usually has more activity on a Thursday evening, but today it was serenely silent.

After the Rain

Knoxville and East Tennessee are amazingly beautiful places to be in the spring, especially because of all the flowering trees. The Bradford pear trees are already done; after last night's thunderstorm, most of the petals are scattered on the ground or pooled in the gutters like these forlorn petals. But the redbuds and dogwoods are already starting to bud and bloom.

River Town

When I first found the Daily City Photo Blogs, I enjoyed visiting them so much, that I thought maybe someday I would start a photoblog too. Well, I finally realized that I might wait forever for "someday" to arrive, so I gave myself a deadline. That happens to be today, on my birthday. No foolin'.

This is the Tennessee River, looking southwest with the Henley Street Bridge in the background. Downtown Knoxville is sitting quite prettily on the north bank just out of range of this shot.