monday's mulling: do your duty, pick up the doody

It’s a problem everywhere: inconsiderate dog owners who leave their dogs’ droppings behind for the rest of us to step around. Apparently, common courtesy has gone to the dogs—and picking up poop has become a waste of peoples' time.

It’s gotten so bad that “Clean Up Your Dog’s Mess” signs are now a big business.

But one Chicago artist decided that a sign didn’t go far enough. Why settle for a polite reminder when you can make a monumental statement about a pile of crap?

Polish-Chicago artist Jerzy S. Kenar took matters into his own hands or, more accurately, his own artistic vision, and created The Shit Fountain. The bronze sculpture depicts a coiled pile of dog excrement mounted on a three-foot sandstone pedestal. It’s his personal protest against pet owners who think cleaning up after their four-legged friends is someone else’s problem.

The beauty of this masterpiece of canine commentary: it sits on Kenar’s private residential property, meaning the city has no say in its existence. No bureaucratic pileup…just one artist, one bronze turd, and a pointed message for people who leave their dogs’ business behind.

The result is a scatological work of art that makes its point without beating around the bush, or stepping in one. You visit out of curiosity, have a good laugh, snap a few photos, and leave with a memorable story.

Some artists work in oils, others in marble. Kenar chose to give a crap—and turned it into art.

bridges

After yesterday’s post, I realized I have A LOT of bridge photos. I originally planned to write about the symbolism and metaphors of bridges, but I just didn’t feel like thinking that hard. So instead, please enjoy a collection of bridges from my travels and a few closer to home.

There’s something special about bridges. They connect places, offer new perspectives, and sometimes make us pause to appreciate the view. But today, I’ll let the photos do the talking.

The John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge, goes over the Ohio River, connecting Newport, Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio. The Roebling Bridge served as the prototype for the Brooklyn Bridge.

The Brooklyn Bridge crosses the East River and connects Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. The walk across the BB is 1.1 miles (1.8 km). It's a high traffic destination, both on foot and by vehicle. As a pedestrian, stay out of the bike lane.

The Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge, aka The 59th Street Bridge (the Feelin' Groovy Bridge) connects Manhattan and Queens. When coming from LaGuardia we cross this bridge to get into the city. It also has lanes for pedestrians and cyclists.

The Daniel Carter Beard Bridge, Cincinnati, Ohio. Daniel Carter Beard was a Cincinnati native and one of the founders of the Boy Scouts of America. Because of its bright yellow twin arches that resemble McDonald's golden arches, this bridge is fondly known as the Big Mac.

The downtown Columbus, Ohio skyline with a railroad truss bridge crossing the Scioto River along the Scioto Greenway Trail.

The reconstructed Helena Street Bridge, Dayton, Ohio, with the Great Miami River running high after some heavy rain.

Overpass on I-75 just north of Dayton.

Abraham Lincoln Bridge and the adjacent John F. Kennedy Memorial Bridge crossing the Ohio River between Louisville, Kentucky, and Clark County/Jeffersonville, Indiana.

The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge spanning the Cooper River in Charleston, South Carolina. It's over 2 miles long with eight lanes for traffic and lanes for bicycling, running, and walking.

Chicago, Illinois: a blue-and-white city tugboat navigating the Chicago River underneath the Chicago Avenue bridge.

London, England: The Tower Bridge spanning the River Thames. Some people mistake this bridge for London Bridge. Big no, no.

The River Thames in London, with the Waterloo Bridge spanning the water, St. Paul's Cathedral in the mid-ground, the skyscrapers of the City of London financial district, and Embankment Pier in the foreground.

 

Port-en-Bessin-Houppain, France. Omaha Beach, Normandy coast. Thinking about what happened here during WWII was quite a contrast with this peaceful sunset scene.

The Pont des Artes (also known as the "Love Lock Bridge") crossing the River Seine in Paris, with the Musée d’Orsay visible on the right bank.

what do you think?

This is the Fort Henry Bridge in Wheeling, West Virginia, carrying westbound traffic on I-70 across the Ohio River.

Looking at this photo, I thought the bridge was designed to indicate traffic flow, but it wasn't - even though the overhead bracing pattern is identical going eastbound and points forward into downtown Wheeling. This visual pattern is called a K-truss lateral system, a structural engineering choice rather than a directional guide.

OK, so my hypothesis was wrong. What I interpreted as a visual cue for drivers was actually a structural feature designed to help the bridge withstand lateral forces.What  looks intentional from a driver's perspective is totally different from its engineering purpose. (But I think my idea is valid, too).

⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾ ⚾

When my son first moved to Cleveland, this was his view from his apartment, the Detroit-Superior Bridge (and since 1989 also known as the Veterans' Memorial Bridge).

Today the Cleveland Guardians play the Chicago White Sox in Game 5 of the American League Division Champion series in Cleveland. Whoever wins this game advances to the next round of World Series playoffs. Needless to say, the city of Cleveland is already electric and many baseball fans will be walking across this bridge to either watch the game at Progressive Field or else to find a bar to cheer on the Guardians. LET'S GO GUARDS!

the friday feed: my grocery shopping husband

I am the primary grocery shopper in our home, but every now and then Todd decides he wants to shop for a specific item or two. His forays to the grocery store typically  result in finding some “really good deals.”

Last week, we needed milk, and Todd said he would go to the store to get some. Well, what do you know? There was a buy-one-get-one free promotion going on. Oh boy.

We don’t drink that much milk. In fact, I do not like milk. Many years ago, I poured myself a glass, took a big gulp, and it was sour. Ever since then, I refused to drink milk straight up. I put it in my coffee, and that’s about it.

So in walks my husband from his grocery-shopping adventure, pleased as punch with his find, and he gets the you’ve-got-to-be-kidding look from me.

“But the expiration date is October 18,” he says. “We can use it by then.” At the end of this week, we have consumed half of one of the half-gallons. So much for that.

With the weather getting cooler and fall in the air, I’m turning my attention toward soup-making. There’s a big pot of potato-leek soup in our near future.

And there's plenty of milk to make it!

thursday's thought for the day

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”

― Leo Buscaglia

 

wednesday's words and wanderings and wonderings

Here it is - October 7, the first complete week of October. In the blink of an eye, we'll be handing out Halloween candy to the trick-or-treaters.

This past week, we were back in Cleveland for a few days. The Browns played the Pittsburgh Steelers in a Thursday night game. Todd, Andrew, and Jennifer went to the game, while I was on Grandma duty, babysitting the little ones.

Owen, Hallie, and I took a nice, long walk and collected autumn leaves and rocks, played in the backyard, and then the kids ate dinner and cleaned their plates (they even asked for seconds!). After dinner came bath time, and soon after, bedtime. That's where things fell apart. Two little grandkids against one grandma. Let's just say they got to bed a little later than usual. In the big picture, one late bedtime isn't going to disrupt their schedules. And the beat goes on...

Another reason for our trip to Cleveland was to attend Grandparents' Day at Owen and Hallie's daycare. I will accept any invitation to spend time with my grandkids and be part of their lives. I just want to be there to share in their adventures.

It's that time of year again... PUMPKIN-ZILLA! And I do believe this is the biggest one yet. The plan is for this big guy to make it through Halloween and Thanksgiving. Once Thanksgiving is over, it will get wrapped in Christmas lights.

The monarchs are still migrating, and the zinnias at the farm are still in bloom. The monarchs flit from flower to flower, resting their wings and gathering whatever pollen is left for their journey south. These beautiful butterflies still have a long way to go before reaching their winter home in the high-altitude mountain forests of central Mexico.

October carries on - continuing the big pumpkin tradition, monarchs heading south, leaves changing color, and plenty of grandkid adventures along the way.

color

Sometimes we don’t realize just how much color impacts our lives.

For me, color is an important part of how I experience the world — whether I’m wandering through a museum, hiking in nature, exploring a city, taking in public art, shopping for food or clothes, choosing art for my walls, or simply noticing the changing colors of the seasons.

Color is everywhere, constantly shaping our surroundings and influencing how we feel. We shouldn’t underestimate its power.

Take a moment to slow down and appreciate the colors in your life. Notice them. Let them inspire you. You might be surprised by how much they add to your everyday experience.