10/20/08

Bricks with paw prints and leaves


These are new bricks and a close inspection reveals various leaves, ferns, and paw prints.




10/18/08

Postcards from North St. Louis

Click on the title and jettison.

I rarely have the time to look at other local blogs and/or photos but came across this one and it's primo.

10/13/08

Repurposed

This summer I was dead heading the clematis vines when two wrens decided to go Kill Bill on my ass. I have enough problems with batshit mockingbirds so I really wasn't in the mood to rumble. That's right, I backed off. Not that I turned my back, I just respectfully retreated.

A few days ago I found this empty nest in the vines.
The birds had lined their nest with plastic.

See how they run

A recent recon on the foundation of my building revealed small rodents have been borrowing into the mortar. This happens every fall and it's tedious. My back yard jungle provides plenty of romantic getaways for the mice to honeymoon with exceptional shaded suites under the leaves of the monster hostas.

Now I'm running herds of creatures who carry their own ecosystem.

This year I cheated by using 'mortar' in a tube. As if.
Dish soap for coating the fingers. Small rocks get pushed in along with the gunk.

10/9/08

Tower Grove South Walking Tour

Join us for the Architecture Walking Tour on Sunday, Oct. 12th at 2.

This is a fundraiser for the TGS Block Captains and is conducted by Bad Tim who is a Real Live Architect.
I'll be in attendance in collect your 5.00 donation which benefits the TGS Block Captain Fund.

We'll be meeting at the Car Wash on Morgan Ford at 2.
Tag along and hear Tim explain what it is, why it's there, what went wrong, etc.

We will be touring the interior of the Historic Oak Hill Presbyterian church compliments of Jan Stanford.

In the event of rain the tour will be postponed.

Fierce Glazed Architectural Terra Cotta









Black brick slays me
.

10/7/08

Good vibes

Working with Bruk last night we came to this jacket in the pile of vintage clothing.
OK, how would you describe this jacket? Positive affirmations?

From behind me I hear her mutter: The wall in the Womens bathroom.
I laughed so hard I hit the wall.

Likewise hilarious yesterday was my Doctor pulling the too tight stitches out of my hand. I was yelling, he was telling me to relax (as if) when I showed him my sweating hands. Look at this, I shouted, you're killing me!
He scoffed: That's just from me touching you.

Last week in the operating room I complained to him that I had to take off everything just to have surgery on my hand.
I had nothing to do with that, he tartly informed me before they knocked me out.

10/4/08

St. Louis Building Arts Foundation

One day last spring the gorgeous Lynn Josse allowed me to visit the St. Louis Building Arts Foundation library while it was housed in St. Louis.

It was overwhelming.
Wall-to-wall industrial shelving and hundreds of thousands of historic books. Antique bronze sculptures from an insurance company. Prints. Drawings. Photos. Magazines.


Fleeing a burning (brick) house.




The following is a series of photos from one of the many thousands of books in the library.