What I would do for a view like this!

The view from my front yard.  Just kidding!  (I wish my front yard had this incredible vista!) Today's post is a complement to yesterday's -- the magnificent view of Pikes Peak and the Garden of the Gods from the CS Utilities Demonstration Xeriscape Garden on Mesa Road, captured on Wednesday the 29th.

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The CS Utilities Xeriscape Demonstration Garden

 

We live in a very arid climate, so gardening can be a real challenge here.  This is an understatement. I can tell you from (frustrating) firsthand experience that certain plants simply will not grow here!  So in the interests of preserving water in a drought year, as well as getting inspired while saving myself from more gardening headaches, I paid a visit to the Colorado Springs Utilities Xeriscape Demonstration Garden at 2855 Mesa Road yesterday. It's free and open to the public.  Basically this facility is great example of how you can have a beautiful garden in this not-very-plant-friendly environment, just by choosing the right species and utilizing a few water-wise techniques. Even if you're not into gardening, it's a nice place to spend an hour or two. The view can't be beat!  Above, the entrance to the garden, and below, a few snaps I took during my visit.

I'm inspired by this pergola -- I want one for my backyard!

 

Our state flower, the Columbine, grows well in this climate.

 

I love the cool fossil in this stepping stone.

 

You can never go wrong with cactus in the American southwest! (And in a few days, those bright green buds will be beautiful flowers.)

 

Killer view!

The cusp of summer...

Finally, finally we are having consistently warm weather, and even sunshine!  It has certainly been a fitful spring.  I dropped a lens while shooting a wedding last week, and after fetching it from the repair shop I tested it out on Mr. Robin in my back yard.  He didn't seem too happy to have his picture taken at that moment ;^)  But hey, my lens is back in good working order, and that's definitely something to chirp about!

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Pikes Peak seen through barbed wire. This is a view I've never thought to photograph before. Not quite as scenic as the usual!

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The colorfully decorated bike shed at Urban Peak, a youth services center on E. Cucharras.  Happy Memorial Day to my readers in the U.S.  I hope you have a fun day, full of barbecue and friends!

Mill Street community garden

Pat recently discovered this enormous community garden in the charming Mill Street neighborhood, and took me there on a bike ride last weekend so I could get a few pictures of it.  In a few short weeks, all those planters will be overflowing with veggies!  I really like the greenhouse, don't you? It'd be nice to have one like that in my backyard!

Looking good!

Chadbourn Community Church is looking well-loved these days! This is great news, since this little church has had some highs and lows over the years, including getting robbed last summer.  Pat and I noticed last weekend how nice it's looking, so we stopped for a quick picture.

Skywatch Friday

Looking eastward across Monument Creek toward the downtown skyline, opposite the view of Tuesday's post.  To see more Skywatch Friday images from bloggers all over the world, click HERE.

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Pat found this odd little sculpture in the front yard of a home on St. Vrain Street, and brought me there so I could get a picture of it. I can't decide if it's cute or terrifying. I do think it's funny though!

Here's the rear view (sorry if you're easily offended!):

Under the viaduct

On a bike ride last Sunday, Pat and I paused under the viaduct west of America the Beautiful park. I noticed that  the massive concrete supports, instead of being covered in gang tags and graffiti, were painted with individual murals. What a creative and artful way to deter (or cover up) vandalism!

Kokopelli hunting

Ah, Kokopelli the flute player, King of the Tchotchkes, circa 1994.  How is it that he's had such staying power?  Cast your mind back to the 1990s, when Pottery Barn was still just a catalog, when overalls were the sartorial must-have of the day, when Beverly Hills 90210 and Twin Peaks ruled our television sets.  Do you remember Southwestern décor?  Do you remember faux painted walls, grunge, and Sega?  Do you remember Kokopelli? The shadow of him still endures in Colorado. If you look closely, you can find him in yards, on car bumpers, t-shirts, mugs and platters, on wind chimes, gates and candlesticks... heck, every now and then, if you're lucky, you may even see a Kokopelli tattoo!  My friends and I find this very amusing, and make a game of taking pictures of every Kokopelli we see, even if it means following a car through traffic for miles just to get a snap of a Kokopelli bumper sticker (I've done this).  I found a whopper of a Kokopelli the other day, and of course how could I pass him by without memorializing him in a photo? ;^)

Good food and happy faces

I had drinks with a couple of friends at the Blue Star, one of my favorite dining spots, on Thursday.  There is a very happy mural covering the entire north side of the building, part of which is pictured here since I couldn't walk past it without taking a picture for you :^) I heard a rumor that the Blue Star will soon be relocating to the recently vacated, historic Ivywild School. It's a pity they can't take the mural with them!

The Mission Arts Center mural

This mural recently materialized on the south side of the Mission Arts Center on North Nevada between Platte and Boulder. I like it. I think it's uplifting and a nice addition to our downtown landscape.  We can always use more art!!!

Very un-Colorado!

I shot this photo yesterday afternoon, right outside my studio door.  I was actually testing a camera with a dirty sensor, so I took a picture with lots of sky in it (this makes it easier to see the dust spots).  You can see how cloudy and grey the weather was. In fact, it's been like this for weeks!  Usually we have lots of sunshine here, but every day lately we've had at least a few clouds, if not total cloud cover. It's been a fitful spring for certain.  Very odd!

The Kentucky Derby

Last Saturday was the Kentucky Derby. It seems like every year I miss the Derby because I'm booked to shoot a wedding, but this year I got lucky and had the day off so I drove to Denver to watch it in style at Govnr's Park, a favorite neighborhood bar, with my friend Jennifer. It was so much fun!  Orb was the big winner.  Of course the horse I was rooting for, Falling Sky, came in dead last. I can never pick 'em!

The Kentucky Derby is known as the greatest two minutes in sports.  It's been run every single year since 1875, so there are well over a century's worth of traditions associated with it, including the rather fun requirement that all the ladies wear a fancy hat to the race.  Plenty of people at Govn'rs Park were dressed in Derby style, and there was even a costume contest!  Jenn and I both wore hats (of course!) but didn't participate in the contest.  I thought this couple was especially cute with their Derby fashions.

Fa-fa-fa-fa-fashion

Sorry I've been away for the last few days, readers! I think I just needed a break, and I've also been so busy that I haven't have time to go out and take pictures.  Pat and I did go on a little photo safari last Friday, but those pictures will have to wait until I have time to sit down and edit them properly. I promise they'll be worth the wait, though!

Meanwhile, here's a photo from last night, when I photographed a fashion show at Colorado Co-op, one of my favorite boutiques. There were about five or six models and they each had a half dozen outfits to show us, so it was a lengthy show but I enjoyed every minute. I wanted to buy every ensemble that paraded past me! I settled for taking pictures instead :^)

Flight for Life

My studio is located very near Penrose Main Hospital, thus the Flight for Life chopper is unfortunately a fairly common sight for me.  I wonder if this life was saved.

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One last image from last Sunday's visit to Sinton Pond (see my posts dates 4/29 and 4/30 for more).  These are tree branches, still bare and yet to come into bud, reflected in the still surface of the water.

The remains of the day

This beautiful photo was taken by Pat, looking out the window of Poor Richard's Restaurant as we sat down to dinner a few nights ago.  I love the last kiss of daylight on the buildings across the street. Pat has a great eye.

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What potent blood hath modest May

Potent, indeed! Yesterday, May 1st, we woke up to this. It snowed all morning, it snowed all afternoon, it snowed all evening, and it didn't stop until around midnight.  Pat and I had errands to run regardless of the weather.  During rush hour, in an attempt to avoid bad drivers in sloppy weather, we took frontage roads instead of the interstate. These photos were captured at a very deserted Adventure Golf on Corporate Drive.  What a strange tableau these giant fiberglass creatures presented, covered in snow.

May 2013 Theme Day: the Creative Artisan

Happy May Day, everyone! It's the first of the month -- Theme Day for City Daily Photo bloggers all over the world.  This month's theme is the creative artisan.  To tell you the truth I had completely forgotten about Theme Day this month, and did not go out "on photo assignment" like I usually do. Thankfully, last week my mom asked me to take her shopping in Manitou to buy some gifts, and we stopped into the Manitou Glass Blowers. It's been ages since I've been in that shop.  There was a glass blower right there behind the counter doing his thing -- it was fascinating -- and of course I took his picture, then of course promptly forgot all about it.  When I realized that Theme Day was upon me, I was relieved to come across these pictures in my camera, just waiting to be posted! Voilà!

For more creative artisan images from CDP bloggers all over the planet, please click HERE.