Our star party turned into a rainbow party.  
The magnolias were not cloying as we tromped in the wet grass. 
The clouds were gilt with golden light.

 

In the interest of art here is the new Ed Trask mural on 21st and E. Main that I mentioned in a previous post about The Globe Hopper ( a new coffeeshop in Church Hill) and art in Richmond. Dare I say it is now my favorite Trask  piece now? Not only because of the sheer fact that it is of Nina Simone dammit, but it is also quite lovely. The palette and the painterliness of it makes it a pleasure to see. I'm fortunate enough to pass it daily. Thanks Ed !

The crocus and daffodils are gone. The clematis and cherry are leafing. I saw a honey bee today and we heard some wee insect chirruping this afternoon. It all happens rather quickly here in the south. I already feel like it is too late to plant peas....but I'll do it anyway.

 

The daffodils are in bloom. The crocus are here. My rosemary is covered tiny purple blossoms. There are blushes of pink and white everywhere. The world that we know is about to burst with color. The winter has been mild here in Richmond, Virginia and we are ready for spring to be official ! We made the most of the "extra" hour of daylight after Chris got home from work and planted three trees: a corkscrew willow, a Bing cherry and a Black Gold Cherry. Two of them were birthday presents !

In order to center myself and get back to tending our gardens, I'm reading Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year in Food Life Perhaps it will give me the kick in the pants I need to build the gourd trellis, contend with our groundhog issue, and plant that sunflower bed I'm always dreaming about. Oh, and I want to learn to can too!

 

I also took some time to fiddle with air layering my fig tree. A fascinating co-worker and , from what I gather, a very savvy horticulturist, sketched out instructions on how to propagate my fig tree with plastic, a little dirt, a twig , some yarn and a knife. Basically, I cut a knotch in a branch of the fig, "propped" it open with a twig, then I slipped some plastic over the branch, put some dirt and a little moss around the cut and tied the plastic above and below the cut. I expect roots to form inside the plastic bag and then I will eventually cut the branch away from the tree and I'll have a  piece of fig branch to plant or share with a friend. I made two air layerings. Tomorrow I plant snapdragons and today officially marks the day when I get giddy with anticipation over my Oriental Poppies and Black Tulips. What are you waiting for?

 

                          

   

Science and art belong to the whole world, and before them vanish the barriers of nationality.

~Goethe 

Richmond is home to all kinds of public art. We have a good deal of monuments, especially ones dedicated to civil war veterans. There is one of Bojangles that I always liked, Arthur Ashe (by Fulton Hill artist and neighbor Paul Dipasquale)and a new one called the Reconciliation monument that went up last year. If you've been here in Richmond for a while (I've been here since 1990), you will likely be familiar with the mural paintings of Ed Trask along with his musical inklings and regular ole paintings to boot. Ever since I've lived in Richmond, I've lived with Ed Trask art. I can't tell you how many folks, including my children and I , who were taken aback by the whiting out of the Princess Diana mural that used to adorn Club Velvet, a local strip joint on E. Main Street.

In my last post about the new Globe Hopper coffeeshop here in my part of town, also on E. Main Street, one can see the concentric circles in black and white that were painted by Mr. Trask. I was happy the coffeeshop had kept the circles but when I drove by the very next day I saw that they were being painted over. It seemed like a bleak day for Ed Trask paintings on E.Main Street.

My eight year old son, feeling pretty down about the disappearance of art, asked me "Mom, why does Ed paint them if he knows they are going to get painted over?" I told him he should ask Ed :) 

Fortunately, I spoke with Mr. Trask last night while I dined on crispy duck and foie gras mac & cheese at Millie's Diner for my birthday celebration. He confirmed that he is painting a new mural on the Globe Hopper coffeeshop. It will be of the High Priestess of Soul,Nina Simone. I already know  I'm going to love it, it is Nina Simone dammit !

 

In other news, after dining out with friends and the incomparable Millie's, we headed to Toad's Place to see Benevento Russo Duo. Chris and I have been enamored with these guys for a while now and we were "like totally psyched" when we saw they were playing Richmond. I don't think I've been to a show since before our girlchild was born. We were not disappointed! I really don't think I could describe the music. Describing music is like trying to draw how something tastes...ya know. However, I will say that Russo's drumming was dumbfounding (AND he wore a blazer for most of it) and Benevento's overlapping melodies are not only mesmerizing but so fucking catchy. There is nothing like watching to consummate musicians enjoy having fun. I love how , at times, they both looked like they were having out of body experiences. They were doing what they love and I'm thankful they were!

Happy Birthday to me, I was spared over for another year :)

 

*Special Thanks to Ed Trask, Chris Bopst and Russell Cook for making my birthday so tasty and cozy! 

That goes double for Cat, Clint, Daisy, John and John !