Happy Veteran's Day 2011

Veteran's Day Ribbons Line Gay Street, Knoxville

Last year when Veteran's Day rolled around I posted photographs of the ribbons adorning lamp posts and commented that they had just sprung up all up and down Gay Street. I didn't realize Knoxville had a Veterans' Day parade and I assumed someone had experienced a sudden burst of patriotism. Of course I didn't know about the parade because I've always worked on that day and never had the opportunity to be in the city when it happened.

In response to my blog post about the mysterious ribbons I got a comment from a very helpful person that said, in part, "Its. A. Parade," and commented about how "we" do this downtown. It's one of my all-time favorite comments with it's barely controlled rage and smug downtown insider information.

It turned out that I took the day off last year to be with Urban Brother and we got to enjoy the parade together and I wrote a blog post about it. This year I won't be so blessed: My brother is in his own city and I have to work as is usual. I still thought the day worth mentioning.



My Favorite Veteran: Urban Father with Urban Daughter and Urban Toddler

I'll give a tip of the hat to my favorite veteran: Urban Father. He served in the navy during the Korean War spending time on a fuel ship and in Japan just after the occupation. Even though he was proud to get out of the military, he is, to this day, proud of his service and I appreciate his willingness to do so, as I appreciate all the others who have served or are currently serving.


Veteran's Memorial, World's Fair Park, Knoxville

 It's worth noting that, in addition to several memorials to particular wars, Knoxville has a pretty good memorial to its soldiers who have died in the service of their country. Included are each of the names of Knoxvillians and those from surrounding counties on large markers at the north end of the  World's Fair Park. The inscriptions are kept up to date and include those killed in the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars. I'd encourage you to spend a quiet moment or two there when you get the chance.

And if you are able, enjoy the parade for me. This will be the 86th edition and it begins at 10:40. If you want to send me a good picture (or more) from the parade, I'll look for a chance to include it on the blog. Certainly, take this day to thank a veteran. They deserve our gratitude in every way.

Meanwhile at the Bill Lyons Pavilion on Market Square, the Occupy Wall Street/Occupy Knoxville group will hold a big rally and march. This is not disconnected from Veteran's Day. The freedoms preserved by those Veteran's make this exercise in democracy possible. This is not lost on the group who plan to do something every hour to honor veterans. Their event will run from 11AM to 11PM and is part of the global Occupy the Streets day.

Happy Veteran's Day everybody.

Veteran's Memorial, World's Fair Park, Knoxville

Photographs in Search of a Blog, October 2011

World's Fair Park Pavilion, Knoxville, October 2011

I hope you all got to enjoy that great Autumn rain on Friday, the nice weather on Saturday and the first touch of winter on Sunday. It was a great weekend in the city. I read all day Friday, which included "The Letters of Sylvia Beech," loaned to me by Flossie at Union Avenue Books (thanks Flossie, it will be back soon). I tried 31 Bistro Saturday with great friends Shaft and Deda and got in a little trick-or-treat action with Urban Toddler on Sunday. Pretty nice.


Cool Motorcycle in front of Hotel Oliver, Knoxville, October 2011



Tending the garden, fifth floor behind Mast General, Knoxville, October 2011



Singer, Market Square, Knoxville, October 2011

I considered doing something spooky for Halloween, but I'm  not much of a Halloweeny sort of guy so, instead, I'll end the month as I have a number of times before with images from the city I truly liked, but just never found the blog they deserved. Rather than have them disappear into pixel land, I'll throw them out for your pleasure.

Beauty in the City, Knoxville, October 2011

  

Hippie VW Microbus, Summit Hill, Knoxville, October 2011

 

Ballet, World's Fair Park Pavilion, Knoxville, October 2011

 

Spanish Language Radio in Knoxville!

So many things that I photograph are things that I stumble onto in the city. The unexpected sightings of wedding parties, a cool reflection on a building, college kids being, well, college kids, are the kinds of things that make life interesting downtown. When I lived in the suburbs and I went to the grocery store I expected to buy groceries and drive back into my garage. Now, when I buy groceries it involves a walk and I never know what interesting person or sight I might find. Life is too short for dull.

Shadow of the Sunsphere, Knoxville, October 2011

 

Volt at Electric Car Show, Market Square, Knoxville, October 2011

 

Bride and Groom, Church Street UMC, Knoxville, October 2011

If you'd like to see more pictures like these, I have nearly a thousand at the Stuck Inside of Knoxville Facebook Page and I'd love you to go there and hit the "like" button as you look around. Tell your friends about it. I'll be adding labels to pictures and tagging people (you might look for people you know - or yourself - and tag them for me!). Also, I'd love to have you as a friend at the Knoxville Urban Guy Facebook Page.

Cool Ride, Gay Street, Knoxville, October 2011



Dog-powered Bike, Central Street, Knoxville, October 2011

 

Beauty in the City, Too, Knoxville, October 2011

People Watching in the City

Macaw on Union Avenue

Isn't the people watching in a city one of the best things about the whole experience? In some respects we have a pretty homogeneous downtown population. It's a mostly white crowd with a large contingent of twenty-somethings and a large contingent of fifty and sixty-somethings. Fortunately, there are exceptions and I hope the exceptions grow.

Alexia Pantanizopoulos and friends play Beatles and more

A little percussion helps - busking on Market Square

It's not that people watching can't be interesting in Walmart - there's an entire website devoted to it. It's also the only activity that helps me survive the rare drudgery of a trip to the mall. What else could save time spent in that artificially-lighted wasteland? For me, people watching is about the only attraction in that sterile environment. I can't even get a decent cup of coffee in a Knoxville mall.

Sheila and the Sandwich Board - Union Avenue

Man taking matters into his own hands.

This was one of the most interesting sights of the month. This older gentleman, decked out in his suspenders and suit pants is painting the curb in front of the City-County Building with yellow spray paint. I assume he felt that curb is some sort of hazard. I wonder if he would be commended by city officials or arrested for defacing public property. Still, you have to like it: If you think your world needs to be changed, change it!

Lovers at World's Fair Park on a lazy Sunday morning

A star in her own mind.

The World's Fair Park is a great place to see some odd or simply interesting people. It seems to be the place for quite strolling or dangling your feet in the water (even if a tractor is looking over your shoulder) with the one you love. I also discovered the young woman pictured above giving a very enthusiastic performance to the audience in her head. I might try that sometime. I've also seen an acting class on the stage and sometimes the Frisbee skills displayed on the lawn are superb.

Bill and the Boy

Bill and the Boy

Kind a cool moment led to the two pictures above. I like sitting with Bill for a few minutes now and again to catch up on the gossip in the city and see how he's doing. This particular day we were talking about Worship in the City and I commented that surely the crowds must be good for his busking business. He told me that it wasn't, that the fundamentalists acted like he has a disease and avoid him. As he railed against religious people in general, the young boy approached and asked him if he'd like a sandwich from Subway. He carefully took Bill's order and scurried back to his mother and the two walked toward the deli. I'm not sure if it changed Bill's assessment of anybody, but it was pretty sweet.

So, the city is different. Stroll a few blocks and you might just as well run into some of Knoxville's most wealthy citizens and homeless people. You'll likely see musicians, whether you recognize them or not, Knoxville is full of them. You'll see the cool and the hopelessly uncool. Lovers and the lonely. It goes on, but you'll almost always see something you didn't expect if you keep your eyes open. That would generally require more of us to unplug our ear buds, stop staring at our smart phones and unglue them from our ears. Be here, now, right?

I'll hopefully see you all at the Hola Festival on Saturday. Have a great weekend in the city.

Knoxville Through the Eyes of a Child

Vegetables at the Market Square Farmers' Market

This weekend promised to be packed with Urban goodness. When Saturday arrived, crisp and cool, and Urban Toddler made the scene, we set out for some large fun. I get a bit frustrated when I hear people say that they would love to live downtown, but what kind of place is it for children? Well, let me tell you about Saturday as an example.

Market Square Farmers' Market on a cool Saturday morning

The first stop along the way had to be the Market Square Farmer's Market. Urban Toddler loves picking out the vegetables as she cruises in her stroller or runs about. This week was about the flowers. Her stroller was all decked out. She also loved the blueberries when they were in. Last week she ate over half a pound while we were out. She also wanted a cool apple cider in the little plastic apple and a confection from Rick's Breads.

Urban Toddler and Urban Daughter in the Sunsphere

From that point decisions had to be made. Krutch Park offered a cook-off with local chefs using ingredients from the Market. It was tauted by brochure pushing teenagers promoting the family-friendly atmosphere and children's activities. That has to be the choice, right? But wait - what about story time at Union Avenue Books at 11:00?

World's Fair Park Playground

More friends: More Fun

We left it up to the little princess-in-waiting and she picked "none of the above." She decided she'd rather go to the playground at the World's Fair Park where she had a blast. Excellent choice. We did manage a stop along the way to ride the elevator to the top of the sunsphere and look out at the city from the observation deck. It's free and open most of the time. At the playground she was joined by another half-dozen or more urban children, while others frolicked in the large fountains.

Urban Toddler loves the slide: World's Fair Park

After that it was Urban Naptime followed by a certain football game of interest. The day was capped off by a birthday party for B.B. King who turned 86 this week. This particular Urban Toddler's favorite book is "One Shoe Blues" by Mr. King. She often insists that we play his music on the ipod and she was majorly bummed that B.B. did not show up for his own party. After her bath she regained her mojo in time to dance into the night to the sweet sounds of the blues.

Not Happy: B.B. King didn't show up for his party!

So, the day was a smashing success downtown for one Urban Toddler. Others probably enjoyed the children's activities in Krutch Park, caught story time at Union Avenue Books and rocked some serious fountain time when the afternoon grew warmer. Many of them probably caught the free family-friendly movie on Market Square the night before. Not a bad warm-up weekend as the little tykes get pumped for next week's Hola Festival.

Dancin' to the Blues

What Does Downtown Offer Children on a Hot Summer Day?

Fountains and Crowds at the World's Fair Park, Knoxville

Children and Downtown are two topics I hear people discuss frequently. People discuss school zones for downtown, child safety downtown, children's activities at festivals and often whether events are family friendly or not (most downtown events are family friendly). But right now, it's summer. The children aren't attending school and there can't be an event every single day, though sometimes it seems that way in the spring and summer. Though there is one at the YMCA, there is no public pool. What's a child to do?

Children and Adults enjoy the Fountains on the World's Fair Park

Fountains at the World's Fair Park

Look no further than the World's Fair Park. On many hot summer days you'll find loads of children, families and some older people laughing, running and sunning on the north end of the park. There are likely Frisbees, hula hoops and soccer balls in the center of the field, but at the north end are two treasures that many people have discovered, while others have no idea they exist: massive fountains and a great playground.

Unspeakable Joy

The fountains shoot twenty or thirty feet or more into the air, so it can be intimidating to the smallest among us and they may want to stick to the smaller fountains on Market Square or in Krutch Park Extension. For the older children, however, it seems to be a blast that just keeps on thrilling and chilling. They run at each other, away from each other, in one side and out the other. They sit on the jets and put their feet over the jets, sometimes spraying passing adults as part of the fun, intended or not.

Playground at the World's Fair Park, Knoxville

Instead of or between watery excursions, many children flock to the playground, which is a safety conscious, yet colorful hard plastic maze of tunnels and walls. If your child's preference is to crawl over, under, around up or down, they've got him or her covered. As for that potentially nasty moment of touchdown from the slide or the inevitable spill from the monkey bars: no problem! The ground is covered with what appears to be recycled rubber which has enough sponginess to send the most fragile child scurrying for another climb or clamber with minimal tears. If you have children, you really should check it out on some lazy summer day.

Kung Fu Dragons and Lions: Wah Lum Kung Fu

Wah Lum Kung Fu Dragon, Knoxville

I've previously posted photographs of dragons in the Dogwood Arts Parade. I didn't know where the dragons came from and simply became intrigued.

Drums for Wah Lum Kung Fu

Happy Buddha tames the Lions - Wah Lum Kung Fu

I ran into them again at the Children's Festival of Reading on the World's Fair Park, which is where these photographs were taken, and learned that they come from the Wah Lum Kung Fu group in Knoxville and that probably some of the characters I'm calling dragons may be lions. There are different performances for each and each feature rhythmic drumming, gongs and cymbals and a Happy Buddha. They are to bring good luck.

Wah Lum Kung Fu lion mounts a stand

Wah Lum Kung Fu dragon, World's Fair Park, Knoxville

The center also features Kung Fu classes under the direction of "Sifu Leroy Kautz (who) is a 7th generation successor of the Wah Lum Tam Tui Northern Praying Mantis Kung Fu System." He has won numerous awards for his dragon dancing and has studied under the world's greatest Kung Fu masters. If the dance performance is any indication, his Kung Fu must be amazing.

I'd encourage you to look for an opportunity to catch one of their performances. It's very impressive

2011 Children's Festival of Reading

Children's Festival of Reading, World's Fair Park, Knoxville

Drama in Amphitheater, Children's Festival of Reading, Knoxville

Friends of the Library, Children's Festival of Reading, Knoxville

Knoxville has a world-class children's reading festival sponsored each May in World's Fair Park by the Knox County Public Library. This year's festival was as incredible as always, covering the entire park and attracting thousands of children and parents.

Characters from Children's Books mixed and mingled

Very animal friendly event

Robert Sabuda (pop-up book author), Grace Lin (Newbery honor winner), Patricia McKissack (one of the most famous illustrators in the world) and Bill Harley (double Grammy-winning story teller), and many other authors, illustrators and story-tellers entertained the children.

Balloon Animals drew a line of children

Children's Festival of Reading, Knoxville

Children's Festival of Reading, Knoxville

The entertainment also included dramatic presentations, music, face-painting and crafts. Tents and booths sponsored by Friends of the Library, Ijams, the Knoxville Zoo and many other groups added to the festive atmosphere and educated the children while entertaining them. Food, healthy and not, was offered along the southern perimeter of the festival and music was everywhere.

Crafts at the Children's Festival of Reading, Knoxville

Wendy? I'm not sure.

South American Story Teller, Children's Festival of Reading

So, to review you have books, food and music. Other than an occasional nap, that's really about all you need for happiness in this world. It's great that this event is sponsored in Knoxville. I cannot imagine a parent not putting this on their calendar every year.

Sabrina at the Ijam's Booth

Face Painted, Children's Festival of Reading, Knoxville

Cheap Books: Friends of the Library, Children's Festival of Reading

I also love it when parallel events happen that attract so many people. The Market Square Farmer's Market was packed just a few blocks away. I hope some of the families venture over for that gathering, as well. It can't hurt to cross-pollinate some of the crowds that hang out downtown. The danger is, of course, it might make for a whole new crop of residents. It happened to me: it could happen to you. Better watch out!

I have no idea - but it's colorful! Children's Festival of Reading

Two, too precious