joewatts

Finishing Up ALZCA’s Garden Art Party Invite

March 4, 2008 by joewatts

The above two pieces are the nearly complete invitations for the Garden Art Party, a really great event held each year (this year is April 12, 2008). All the art used is created by Alzheimer’s patients and is auctioned off along with a host of other art. (www.alzca.org)

Have put a good bit of energy in getting this invitation completed, but I’m happy with the results. Below is one of the options rejected before we came up with the above option–I came up with several additional options, but this was my favorite of the ones we didn’t go with. (The option below only includes the front panel.)

A Memorial To Mama

March 3, 2008 by joewatts

Above is a photo of the house Mama lived in all her life and the house that my five sisters and I grew up in. (this photo was taken last week–the same time as the photo of daffodils below)

This is the last photo I have of Mama, taken Christmas 2006 after everyone was gone home but Ann and me. We stayed and visited and watched Mama do her crossword–no one stopped her from completing her crossword every day. She firmly believed in exercise–both body and mind-and would do those crosswords every day as religiously as she would do her morning exercises in bed before getting up. I wish I had her tenacity.
Here’s a link to the first photo of Mama that I know of: Mama as a child.
Here are some additional photos I have of Mama, taken between 2001 and 2006. www.joewatts.com/mama/

Flowers from Octagon, Alabama

March 2, 2008 by joewatts

From a recent trip to Octagon. I’ve planted hundreds of the daffodils, but none of the snowdrops in Birmingham, yet. I think I’ll try to change that once it is time to dig bulbs again.

Some Poetry from e.e. cummings

March 2, 2008 by joewatts

I’ve never been much of a reader of poetry, other than infrequently, but for some reason while going to the grocery store this morning (by far the best time to go appears to be 7:30 a.m. on Sunday morning–but I should not have skipped the coffee to get there early) I heard e. e. cummings on NPR and had to come home and find more.

may my
heart always be open to little
birds who
are the secrets of living
whatever
they sing is better than to know
and if men
should not hear them men are old

may my mind
stroll about hungry
and
fearless and thirsty and supple
and even if
it’s sunday may i be wrong
for
whenever men are right they are not young

and may
myself do nothing usefully
and love
yourself so more than truly
there’s
never been quite such a fool who could fail
pulling all
the sky over him with one smile
e.e. cummings

To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best night
and day to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest
battle any human being can fight and never stop fighting.
e.e. cummings

Your Town Alabama Blog: Designing Our Future

March 1, 2008 by joewatts

One of my favorite projects, Your Town Alabama, has a blog now. I’m trying to add information to it on a weekly or more frequent basis, so keep checking it if you want to learn more about Alabama’s small towns and communities. www.yourtownalabama.org/blog

The Blog does seem to be helping, as I’ve noticed a significant increase in traffic since posting the blog. Hopefully, this will continue and provide more people in Alabama with the information that they need to make our state a better place to live.