FRANKIE!! A fixture at the coffee shop for almost as long as this has been a coffee shop… 13 years and counting. This is his favorite place to be… the place, he reminds me every morning, where he always has fun ("You know that!")… doing the things he most loves to do: sitting outside, drinking coffee, waving to everyone driving by, sometimes complaining about the loud and/or fast trucks, but mostly just loving life every gosh darn day, and chatting up all who sit down to share his table during the morning.

I'm pretty sure the paint is still wet in this photo. The final wrap up is yet to come. I just had to share this as soon as possible. It makes me so happy.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

 

The end is in sight and everyone is working so hard to finish the mural!! I'm very proud of my husband's work, my kids' work, and Ali's employees — all of whom have been involved in this project from the beginning. I'm not sure about blood or tears, but I know there's been a lot of sweat given up in the name of community pride and involvement. Way to go, peeps!

I love this photo! (All shamelessly stolen from Ali.)

Almost… not quite. Just wait 'til you see… it's gonna be AMAZING!! The perfect finish.

Speaking of amazing… there was weather in the area late yesterday and that can make for gorgeous skies!

 

I can't believe it, but I think it's been almost two years since I posted anything about the mural. It's coming along!

It's hard to get a good overall view (especially with a camera phone) because it's very long and also snakes around a curve. Rusty's been there every morning this week to take delivery of the lift, courtesy of the city, to paint in that high gray spot (it'll be the river).

Ali and some of her fellow baristas have been working on the coffee shop!

The bridge that connects our city (this is the old one).

Shops on Second Street.

Our public library.

The historic "mansion." (Also, a nod to the farmer market on the right.)

And plenty of memories… things that are no more:

The old hotel.

The feed mill.

The train depot.

And, of course, no mural updated is complete without my favorite swimmer! He's holding up pretty well.  ;)

I think it'll be a wrap this summer!

 

Time for a mural update!  I still haven't made it over there on a Monday — the big weekly work day; hopefully, next week.

I took a couple of other photos — surprisingly, not a one of my favorite begoggled swimmer boy — check 'em all out in my Flickr Mural Set.

Thank you for your kind words yesterday.  Blogging has certainly enriched my life and brought me some wonderful, supportive, and generous friends.

I missed the best of the evening light by exactly two minutes last night.  These particular hydrangea bushes — right smack in front of my house, I might add — are loaded with flowers but not particularly big; in fact, they are quite small.  So I missed the best of the light, but was determined to try to catch as much as I could as it faded and first squatted, then crouched, touched one knee to the ground, then the other, then my butt, an elbow… I try not to think about the neighbors 'til I pick myself up and dust myself off.  It's pretty, though, isn't it?

I'm thinking of making a card, a set of cards, a series of prints — it's still formulating — but a special and distinctive series of images to sell on Etsy designating some or all of the profit to the American Cancer Society or a local women's health organization… something.

It's the time you have, not the time you want.  (Thanks Kate!)