Championing the makers, artists, and wanderers in all of us.
I took some video of our city’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Parade this January, and I finally got it together and online.
There was such an atmosphere of joy and community at the event. The people walking (or dancing or riding) down the parade route seemed so glad to be involved, and the crowd cheered everyone on.
No joke, applause broke out when the horse cleanup guy shoveled some manure off the road.
The parade was followed by music and talks about the legacy of Dr. King.
I did an envelope journal workshop again this year at Southwest Maker Fest.
Once again, the attendees were super creative, coming up with their own clever modifications to the project, including one multifunctional journal that doubled as a wallet and a paper airplane!
This year, my assigned room was in a different area within the i.d.e.a. Museum that seemed less hectic.
Also, I had help! Several friends showed up and pitched in with explaining the project to latecomers and helping answer questions, etc. A big thank you to Anne, Katie, Trish (who also brought extra art supplies), and the ever-patient Phillip!
It was a lot of fun, and it always gets me thinking about how to make it better the next year!
P.S. You can make this too!
When we moved, we found ourselves near a place with great banh mi, which are Vietnamese sandwiches on French bread with these marinated vegetables and thinly sliced meats. It’s a beautiful blending of cultures.
My brother Ian says the many banh mi places in Seattle all seem to charge exactly $3.98 for a sandwich. As with many things, they’re even cheaper here in Phoenix. It’s a lotta deliciousness for your buck.
Have you tried banh mi? Do you have a favorite spot near you?
I was back at the Mesa Urban Garden and took a photo for you guys of the little library/phone booth.
Maybe you wouldn’t call it a phone booth. It’s the later version of a phone booth, the not-fully-enclosed kind I grew up seeing. And it seems like the books have been replaced with gardening resources, which is also good. But it’d be neat if books could be back in there too.
There’s a community garden in Downtown Mesa that I’d heard about but hadn’t been to until my sister-in-law Liz was in town.
Isn’t it funny how you tend to see more of your city when someone is visiting?
Anyway, after lunch at Republica Empanada (at Hibbert and 1st Ave.), she asked about the gate next to the restaurant that leads into the Mesa Urban Garden, and we went to check it out.
I wasn’t expecting to see much, because August in Phoenix is rough on plants and only the most hardy survive. But there were still a fair number of things growing – veggies and vinca and this gorgeous trumpet vine with orange flowers and long green pods.
The garden is surrounded by walls with colorful murals, and there’s a Little Free Library made from an old phone booth.
I’ll definitely have to return later this fall!
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