Pretty great weekend although it fell somewhat short of awesome! Too many obligations crowded into a few short days of fun. Among the good parts were a four mile run on Saturday, a six mile run on Sunday, Saturday lunch with my Dad, a Sunday bike ride on totally tired legs and a little bit of shopping. Here are a few random photos from the weekend.
1. Lilies are my current favorite flower (white, pink or yellow). The cost is about 2 bucks per stem and they last for several weeks. I love that the fragrance fills the house with such deliciousness.
2-3. My sweet Daddy is an artist (a research chemist and educator by trade). At almost 91, he continues to draw and paint. Saturday he surprised me with this redrawn copy of a self portrait he did 20 years ago. The inscription melts my heart. This is the same man who produced the collage below. The face on that painting reminds me of my mother.
4. Saturday night John and I went to the Five Oaks Outlet Mall in Pigeon Forge, TN. I was captivated by the brightness of the white buildings against deep blue clouds. Oh, and the shopping was pretty good too.
5. Sunday morning we went to brunch at The Bistro at the Bijou in downtown Knoxville.
6. We also strolled through town looking at some of the newer art installations.
7-10. As the revitalization of our downtown area spreads, the graffiti artists have moved into the alleys. This alley has a number of beautiful works.
8. We are seeing more and more cars outfitted with boats, bicycles and paddle boards in our downtown area. Love this!!
9-10. One of the weekend obligations included a ribbon cutting for an outreach program at Vestal United Methodist Church in South Knoxville. The church has fallen on hard times and the nave is in desperate need of repair. We were able to peak through the massive wooden doors of the main building at these beautiful sandstone windows! Years ago, someone had the wisdom to cover them with Plexiglas (visible in the 2nd photo), which has saved them from hail damage and vandalism. The church dates back to the late 1800’s.
11. Self photo before the 6 mile run on Sunday.
12. Tired legs still able to climb a few hills on the bicycle.
Hope you had a great weekend. Thanks for reading!
