Garden Day

Today was a work day......spent most of the day helping out in the community garden. We had a good turn out of volunteers and we made some good progress!

Perceptions of the Eastside Need to Change

There was a recent article in the newspaper in which a developer is quoted as saying that "there are only one or two houses worth saving in Dignowity Hill". That by it self is bad enough but unfortunately for this developer he made the statement in the presence of our Council woman, Ivy Taylor, who of course, lives in Dignowity Hill. Comments like the one this developer made are uttered out of ignorance, a lack of sensitivity for a community and misguided perceptions .....and that needs to change if we're going to progress in a positive manner.
The recent economic summits have brought much needed attention to the Eastside and it's about time. Undoubtedly, there will be many moving pieces to revitalizing our neighborhoods and bringing much need economic development.
In the case of our developer, he got an instant education about the historic nature of Dignowity Hill and why it's so important to be sensitive or at least have some common sense if you're not sure of what you think you know. The lesson for those of us that live in the Eastside is that we have to do our part to continually educate the uninformed.

Good Day in the Neighborhood

Had a good day today. The sun finally broke through and the rain has gone away, at least for awhile. Our good friends Jeanine and Gordon dropped by and we spent the afternoon exploring the neighborhood together. We went by visited James Hendricks' studio and got to see some of his creations. Stopped by 724 Nolan, what a great old house! The house is being restored and the workers let us go inside and see the work in progress. It was built in 1885 and has some wonderful balconies and even a basement! Walked over to the Hays Street Bridge. The rehab of the old bridge is really taking shape now. Some of the lights are in and the approaches are complete. It was good to see lots of folks out and about in the neighborhood. After what seemed like an eternity of gloomy and rainy days it was good to take a walk in the neighborhood.

Winter Doldrums

It's been a while since the last post. The neighborhood seems to be in a winter doldrums of sorts, although, there's lots of things happening in and around the community. It's been pretty wet with unusually cooler temps this winter than normal. I haven't been able to garden much this winter....the ground does not get enough time to dry out before the next rain comes along. But things are looking up. The weather is suppose to dry up bit for the next week or so. The planning for Pushcart Derby has started. I was invited to meet with the organizers of the derby this past week. Our council woman has committed to having an entry in this year's race! I can't wait to see that cart!

The community garden continues to make progress, although, the weather has affected some of the work still needed to be done, like tilling and completing the raised beds! There's lots of enthusiasm being generated with the garden so I think it will be a great success once the ground dries up enough.

Man, I can't wait for some warmer weather but I shouldn't complain. The folks on the East coast were hammer this week with 2 big snow storms and up the road in the Dallas/FT Worth area, they've also gotten a good amount of snow. So I suppose like everything in life, it's a matter of perspective....but I still can't wait for warmer weather!