City Paint Phoenix 1 – “Old Man Phoenix” at the Garfield Galleria
If you’ve been following or visiting my blog for the past few years, you will likely remember the City Paint series of posts that featured street art, graffiti, and building art that I found during my explorations of Salt Lake City, Utah. As you might also remember, I am no longer in Salt Lake, as my family and I have returned to Phoenix, Arizona….
In an effort to re-establish or re-orient myself in the locale and to introduce you to a bit of my new and old home town, I will begin sharing similar artwork that I find during my official and unofficial wanderings of Phoenix’s neighborhoods. I offer those two categories of wanderings for anyone interested, only to state that part of my responsibilities with my new (and old) employment here in this pan of desert is to venture into the wide city and county looking for individuals who might need to visit our clinic for one reason or another. During my searchings for street addresses and hang-outs, in addition to my lengthy commute to and from my workplace (and occasional recreational and photography-oriented explorations), I can’t help but notice the markings and decorations of buildings and alley walls that I pass along the way.
While I have noticed a striking difference in the style of art between the Phoenix and Salt Lake City offerings (although not necessarily with this first post), I still find the Phoenix art to be as creatively compelling and worthy of respectful consideration…for not only is it born of artistic minds and hands, it is also wrought with a richness of symbol and story and meaning that is so much greater than the simple results of the stroke of a brush or spraying of a can of paint.
So…please join me in this new venture of appreciating the street art, graffiti, and building art of Phoenix, Arizona, USA…as you have joined me in Salt Lake City. This first selection is from the side of a building at the Garfield Galleria…316 West McDowell Road in Phoenix proper.
If you’re interested, you can read more about the Garfield Galleria at this link…and if you’d like to check-out the artist, Coxy, you can click on his name to be taken to the street art page on his web-site. If you venture beyond that linked page to learn more about him, be fore-warned that some of his work is rather graphic…body parts…etc.
As always, thank you for joining me here at Scott’s Place…for visiting and sharing a bit of your time with me…and if you’d like to see more from my City Paint series, you can scroll to the bottom of the page and click on Street Art – Graffiti under the Categories widget.
the forest and the trees….
This is an image from my first true hike since moving back to Arizona…it was a different kind of forest with its own smells and sounds, but it was rich in its reward of peace and solitude. I only saw one other person for the first almost five miles…a stealthy mountain-biker who crept up on me as I was kneeling just off the trail making photos of some pine cones and flowers…startled the hell out of me…but otherwise, it was quiet in the way that woods are supposed to be with only the breeze blowing through the tree-tops, the occasional bird letting me know that she/he had seen me, and the sounds of my footsteps on the trail.
Ponderosa Pine forest, Walnut Canyon, Arizona
Introductions – Scott and his Place
What a beautiful gift of sharing…Leanne Cole has showcased my work on her blog with her weekly “Introductions” post. I am touched to be so honored…almost don’t know what to say. If you’ve not visited with Leanne in the past, I’d encourage you to do so now. She has some incredible photography and easy-to-follow tutorials of the craft. Thank you for the post, Leanne…and your very kind words about my work.
I stumbled across a new blog today…Melinda has been posting for just over a month…thought you all might enjoy taking a look at the world through her eyes…..
fallen petals on pavement.
+++
“i walk slowly, like one who comes from so far away
he doesn’t expect to arrive.”
–jorge louis borges
[photos: kitsilano beach, vancouver, bc]
blog update
Just to let you know…I have changed the name of my blog…just the name…everything else remains the same….
Effective today, right now, actually a few moments ago, “Pieces of Me and Other Sundry Things” has changed to “Scott’s Place…Images and Words.” With the evolution of the blog and its contents over the past year or so, the new title seems more appropriate.
And…thank you to all of you who view my photos, read my writings…and follow my blog…your part of the conversation is what makes this so rewarding…. Thank you again for being there…. 🙂
Tokens of Appreciation
I have recently been honored by some of my friends in our blogging world with certain tokens of appreciation. Four of my fellow bloggers have generously given me the Awesome Blog Content (ABC) Blog Award, the Kreative Blogger Award, and the One Lovely Blog Award. I am nearly lost for words as I consider the weight of their kindness.
A couple weeks ago, Sharon of Figments and Imagination presented me with my first ABC Blog Award. A few days later, George of She Kept a Parrot honored me with the second. 
And then, shortly after that, Strawberry Indigo touched me with the Kreative Blogger award, 
and finally, Dovesgold of Season’s Light added to the blessings by giving me the One Lovely Blog award.
Thank you, Friends, each one of you, for your kindness and generosity in sharing your nice words and sentiments. I cherish your appreciation of my little blog with its pictures and stories…. Your continued visiting of my site, your supportive comments, and now your bestowed honors…all contribute to my enjoyment of working/playing with my blog and encourage me to do better. Thank you…and thank you. 🙂
If you don’t know Sharon, George, Strawberry Indigo, and Dovesgold, I encourage to visit their sites and take a browse through their work. Sharon is involved with relief work and seems to take photos and write poetry to maintain a sense of balance in her life. Visiting with George is like sitting at her kitchen table from late afternoon until early morning, looking at photos and sharing in the history of her life. Strawberry Indigo has beautiful photography and observations of life…and walking with Dovesgold through her sometimes dark and worrisome poetry can be compelling, as well as validating of our own experiences.
As many of you might already know, most blog awards come with rules or stipulations that accompany accepting them. The ABC Blog Award asks that you thank the person who gave you the award (along with providing a link to their site), describe yourself with the letters of the alphabet, and then pass the award along to other bloggers whose work you admire.
I don’t do very well at describing myself, so I asked my wife and adult children to help with this part:
A – I’m an acquired taste; B – Book lover; C – Cormac McCarthy is my favorite author; D – Diligent; E – Eloquent; F – Feminist, father, mostly fair, sometimes funny; G – I like Gonorrhea and other STDs; H – Hiker; I – Introvert; J – Jaded? Jovial – not really, but I like the word; K – Kind; L – Loyal; M – Mindful; N – Neat, naturalist; O – Open-minded; P – Pragmatic; Q – Questioning, quiet; R – Reflective; S – Skeptic, sometimes stubborn; T – Taciturn; U – Unpretentious, unapologetic, unadoptable, unbelieving; V – Venereal disease – see Gonorrhea; W – Writer; X – Like in algebra…unknown variable? Y – Yesterday, the content of most of my writing; Z – Zoetic (from the Greek, pertaining to living, full of life).
There are two of my blog-friends with whom I will share this award – Bonnie of The Iris and the Lilly, and Chillbrook of Cornwall – A Photographic Journey. I think Bonnie knows the name of every flower and tree in her garden and for miles around her lovely home. She shares her photos and insights and never fails to brighten my day with her posts. Chillbrook is an early retiree whose life was touched by the children he taught in inner-city schools in London. He uses his camera now to explore the beauty in his new/old countryside that is his home in Cornwall, England. Both of these blogs are chock-full of beautiful photos and compelling commentary.
As a recipient of the Kreative Blogger Award, the rules obligate/encourage me to thank the person who gave me the award, with a link to their site, list seven things about myself that other people might enjoy knowing about me, and then share the award with another select group of bloggers whose sites I admire.
I have already thanked and introduced Strawberry Indigo, so I will now identify seven things about myself…that may or may not be interesting: 1) I lived in Germany for over 10 years, 2) I still have my stamp collection from when I was a child, 3) I worked at one job for nine years, my next job for ten years, my next job for 11 years, and only have ten and a half years left to make it to 12 years at my current job! 4) I am still married to my high-school sweetheart, 5) My high-school sweetheart still mostly likes me after more than 30 years as my companion, 6) I was a veterinary technician years and years ago, 7) and I used to draw blood from people in alleyways, abandoned buildings, and crack-houses to see if they had syphilis.
The two people I have selected to award the Kreative Blogger Award are Dreams and Zeros and Tania Jessica Smith. Dreams and Zeros shares beautiful words and photos that represent her “daily dreamscape.” And Tania provides us with looks into her life as she has traveled the world and taken photo-evidence of its magnificence.
And finally, with regard to the One Lovely Blog Award, there are no rules, nothing that must be done…it is simply a gift of appreciation for a blog’s content. The award comes with a beautiful badge/button that I can pass along to other bloggers whenever I choose…just to let them know that I really admire their blog. Thank you, again, Dovesgold, for this beautiful badge that I have at the bottom of my blog. As this post has become long enough, I will pass that award along to select bloggers at other times.
Thank you, again, Sharon, George, Strawberry Indigo, and Dovesgold for the little treasures you have shared with me. I will and do cherish them.
The Versatile Blogger Award
I have had this blog with WordPress and another site for over two years now. During this time, I have seen blogger-award badges or symbols posted on various writers’ and photographers’ blog pages and wondered what it would take for someone to receive such an award. Well, this past week I discovered how it happens. Kerry Leibowitz from Lightscapes Nature Photography Blog presented me with the Versatile Blogger award.
My first reaction was one of being stunned…I couldn’t believe it. My second reaction was that of quiet wonder. How could it be? I looked at the other sites that Kerry nominated and was touched that he would name me among them as possibly deserving such an award. After looking at the other sites, I went back to Kerry’s blog and scrolled through his posts and marveled again and again at the beauty of his photography…and wondered again how or why he would choose me and my blog for such an award. I could continue on for another couple of paragraphs at my amazement of Kerry’s selecting me, but I’ll turn that off for now and simply say “Thank you,” to Kerry for his thoughtfulness and consideration. Again, I am touched…and honored. Thank you, Kerry.
Within the WordPress community, there are “rules” or stipulations that accompany accepting this and other awards. For the Versatile Blogger Award, the recipient must:
1. Thank the award giver and link back to them in your post,
2. Share seven things about yourself,
3. Pass this award along to 15 recently discovered blogs you enjoy reading, and
4. Contact your chosen bloggers to notify them of the award.
For #1 listed above, I have already thanked Kerry and provided a link back to his beautiful blog.
For #2, the following are seven things that you may or may not already know about me from having read my blog:
* I have been married to my high-school sweetheart for over 30 years,
* My wife and I have six children and five grandchildren,
* My favorite authors are Cormac McCarthy and John Steinbeck,
* It only took me 14 years to complete my B.S. in Sociology from Arizona State University…between raising the six children and the rest of life that happened in between semesters and years,
* Before moving to Salt Lake City and becoming an avid hiker in the nearby Wasatch Mountains, I lived in the desert that is Phoenix, Arizona and was an avid racquetball player,
* I used to be a police 9-1-1 operator and dispatcher,
* I find venereal disease to be fascinating. 🙂
For #3, I nominate the following blogs for the Versatile Blog Award:
* Mike’s Look at Life – a brilliant and down-to-earth perspective on real life, the part that’s not always pretty, but real, the part that informs our existence as humans and the trials and joys that complete our lives…with some beautiful photos to boot.
* Travels with The Blonde Coyote – science writer and photographer Mary Caperton Morton provides insight on many of the world’s natural marvels and treats the reader to compelling photographs of the incredible locations that her free-lance writing career and personal travels take her.
* Farm House Stories – Cait shares stories and photos about living in a farm-house in Ontario…captivating photos with thought-provoking quotations.
* The Lantern Room – Meanderer invites us to follow her almost spiritual journey into nature as she captures images that still the heart and encourage us to be “in the moment” and aware of our surroundings.
* Shietree – this is Helen McClory’s photographic blog of her Scottish homeland with her almost poetic descriptions of where she traveled to take the photos…with occasional references to her in-progress novel’s characters’ emotional states or thoughts if they might view the landscapes with us…so beautiful.
* Sarah Horrigan Photography – stunning and moving photography from Sarah’s family and life in England.
* Season’s Light – Dovesgold’s poetry has an alluring rhythm and word choice that reminds me of olde-tyme chants from another age, kind of raw and mysterious…and beautiful…with photos of flowers and nature that calm the spirit.
* Street Inspired – street-level photography by a travel-junkie university student who loves graffiti and street art.
I know that’s not 15 blogs, but I would have a couple more to list if they hadn’t also just received the award from Kerry – James Brandon O’Shea and the Poetic Aperture Blog…incredibly beautiful words and photographs in both.
Thank you again, Kerry.
Scott's Place...Images and Words 