Kitty - 5th ward

I don't know who "Bedwettr" is, but they draw a good cat.

Green bird

I like this guy's style, it's very distinctive. This is across from Texas Art Supply in Montrose.

Eyes on Fannin

A transformer box on Fannin

Wooden bird

Off of Main Street, downtown Houston

I feel like dancing!

Sycamore leaf

Bzzzzz!

What do you think? Do these things add to the garden or make it too "buzzy"? (Full disclosure - my mom made this)

Crepe myrtles

At least something enjoys the heat.  Heat index of 106 degrees F. Whew!

Summer Treat: Peaches!

Aren't they beautiful? One of the joys of summer: luscious, blushing, perfumed, peaches. I know it is possible to get peaches all year round, but canned peaches taste metallic and they don't have the velvet skin or the scent that makes me both ravenous and drowsy. Frozen peaches. . . well, I won't get into frozen peaches. Nothing compares to the real thing. I want to buy bags and bags of peaches and live on them until the season is over.

          From blossoms comes
          this brown paper bag of peaches
          we bought from the boy
          at the bend in the road where we turned toward
          signs painted Peaches.
                                        -  From Blossoms,  Li-Young Lee

Bees!

We have chosen to fill our hives with honey and wax, thus furnishing mankind with the two noblest of things, which are sweetness and light. - Jonathan Swift

One of the highlights of the Houston Museum of Natural Science is the Cockrell Butterfly Center.  It's not just a hall full of bugs, but a simulated rain forest with rare orchids, a waterfall, etc. It's part of the Brown Hall of Entymology which has hissing cockroaches and all kinds of neat insects.  It's a lovely experience because it's always full of flowers and butterflies, but for my money (and HMNS is not a cheap visit) the best thing is the beehive.

The bees are not actually allowed in the butterfly center, as there would be panic and small children screaming and running into the ornamental waterfall. The bees are all nicely sealed off in clear plastic so vistors can see the bees at work and nobody can possibly be stung.  But if you feel daring, go outside the building (free!) and look carefully; you can find the tube that lets the bees out into the world.

But what does the museum do with the honey?

Caturday!

Well? What have you go to show me?

The final flight

Obviously, this is not my picture. I wish I had the money and vacation time to camp out at Cape Canaveral to see the launch live and take all kinds of pictues, but rent and food take priority over epic cool. I don't think there is greater "epic cool" than flying in space. What a grand thing the shuttle is: the technology, the science, the brain power behind the thing. It's astonishing.

I'm sad it's the last shuttle mission, but there will be more space vehicles in the future. Maybe Richard Branson will get his commerical space program working. Maybe some genius we've never heard of will make a technological breakthrough and make it as easy as driving to New Orleans. One thing I'm sure of: spaceflight will continue, and it's going to be epic. 

My neighborhood: The Menil Collection

I have to move in the next two months, which has resulted in me thinking about things I really like about my neighborhood. One of the things I really like is that I'm only a few blocks away from The Menil Collection. A world-class art museum that is FREE!

It even has a gallery dedicated to Cy Twombly, who died this week.

The Menil is easy to miss because it blends into the neighborhood, but that's part of its charm.

See the museum? It's behind the tree. I'm going to miss this place.

It rained today

which is something we've all been hoping for.  And after the rain, the sunset.

Texas skies are always dramatic.

Bottlecaps

The remains of July 4th. I was completely buzzed on a a beer and a half!  I'm becoming such a lightweight. :)

Land of the free, home of the yard sale

Happy 4th everybody!

the littlest lion

The 59 underpass, near Freebird's, just adorable.