soul sister

Last night I went to see Train at the Orpheum. 

They are so so good live.

"Hold your cell phones up in the air, and just be glad that we made it here alive."

Needtobreathe opened. And holy cow were they good.

South Carolina rock and roll boys. So talented.

I love this place. Such a fun night.

yolo

If you live in memphis and haven't yet been to yolo, you're missing out! It's a whole new world of froyo.

Self serve soft serve (say that 5x fast) and more toppings than you could dream of.

Lots of fresh fruit, too.

It's in the Erin Drive shopping center. Check it out!

Announcing...

Say hello to Whisker Snaps Photo, my new little business venture. Check it out here. If you know of anyone with furballs in the Memphis area, send them my way!

fireworks success = sweet

Linking up with You Capture.

 

This winter, I read quite a few articles and blogs about shooting fireworks. Friday night at the Redbirds game was my first shot to test out my new knowledge.

One hiccup. Every one of those article says a nonnegotiable in fireworks shooting is a tripod. Something I don't have yet. Something even if I did have, I probably would not want to haul to a baseball game.

So I took the camera and the lenses anyway and planned to wing it. The show started, and I tried resting the camera on an unsteady rail, producing shaky images at best.

Then I sat down. The bottom of two fence rails and the ground ended up making a perfect stabilizer. I could leave the shutter open as long as I wanted, and I got sharp shots.

Then at the end I started to play. Swirling and swaying the camera while the shutter was open. So much fun.

So my reaction to my first fireworks photoshoot was "Sweet." Can't wait to try again. Who needs a tripod?

floored

If you take the interstate through Memphis, you'll probably see this sign. I've always loved it. It's right next to my eye doctor, and last time I was there I swung next door to snap a shot.

I knew it had closed in the last few years, and that it had been around a while - my mom went on a date here in high school. But that was about all I knew.

So I did a little research, and turns out Skateland has quite the history.

Beginning across the street in another, much larger building.

source

It opened in 1955, but just eight years later the owner sold the building and bought the smaller one. But he brought the neon signs with him. Complete with rotating wheels.

The original building has since been different discount stores, a department store and now a glass company.

Skateland closed in 2006 when there was a roof fire, but the sign remains.

And this is the cool part. A local craftsman/musician bought much of the flooring and now makes and sells furniture from it. He calls it Firebrand Furniture.

source for these

You can see a few more pics here. It's gorgeous, right? Talk about a conversation piece. Is it too early to start my Christmas list?

btw: I used the vintage photoshop method from yesterday's post on the top photo.

Linking up with Finding Serendipity's The Way I See It photo hop.

the best part of spring in Memphis

There is this one little street in Memphis that is lined with Cherry trees.

And when they bloom...wow.

The blooms don't last more than a couple weeks.

During those weeks, though, people are always there to catch a glimpse.

There are some gorgeous tulips on the street too.

You'll never guess the name of the street.

I was channeling Max Wanger in this crop.

central park, memphis style

Happy April! Yesterday after work I threw Maddi in the car and we headed a few blocks west to Overton Park. To me, this park is Memphis' version of Central Park. It's more than 100 years old and is home to the zoo (where there was some drama this week), Levitt Shell open air theatre where Elvis gave his first paid concert, Memphis College of Art, the Brooks Museum of Art, a veterans memorial and a golf course.

Oh, and a great little dog park too.

There's a man made pond, which means no mud and clean water. Score.

Gorgeous weather.

Even the trash cans are pretty.

Veterans' Plaza.

Love these planes from the Korean War monument.

Memphis College of Art. I took a photography class here in the winter. It's awesome.

Maddi approved of the outing.

She didn't want to get in the car.

Sunbathing under the sunroof on the way home.

I couldn't resist a cherry limeade.

Hope April brings many more days like yesterday.

I miss this

Toward the end of the season, I went to Tigers games once or twice a week. Now we have to wait half a year to see them again. Sigh.

I miss the crowd.

I miss going with this one.

I miss bowling over kids after the game so we can be this close to the players. Me for the photo op and Hank for the high fives.

I miss walking down Beale after the game.

I miss this view from the parking garage.

And this one.

And I miss making Hank pull over so I can take a picture of the trolley and the bridge.

Guess I'll have to settle for the Redbirds, our minor league baseball team. They start their season next month. It's no Tigers game for sure, but they do have fireworks.

walking weather

I took the porker for a walk yesterday after work. It was the first time I've worn shorts this year.

Someone forgot her leash etiquette and stopped to smell about 800 times. It was her first walk in the new neighborhood, though, so she gets a pass this time.

Part of my sidewalk is brick.

My dad babysat at this house way back when. It's one of the oldest in the 'hood. He said there's a full servant's quarters.

Not too much is blooming yet, but this guy is ahead of the curve.

Sun was starting to set.

This may become a ritual.

Wide Angle Weekend

Finally got my 20mm lens, so bear with me if I go a little overboard with the wide angle.

The yard is at last leaf-free.

Friday night dinner in Harbor Town.

We ate outside and watched the sun set.

John Mayer. Boy was amazing!

He may be a jerk, but he sure can give a good show.

We were sad Memphis lost, but glad Kansas did, too.

Perfect park day.

We're glad it's spring!