Riding a Harley

Hill Climber on a Harley

Hill Climber on a Harley © 2008

Milwaukee is readying itself for the descent of 500,000 Harly-Davidson bikers, all coming to town this Thursday through Sunday for the company’s 105th Anniversary party. Yes, the city will nearly double in size in a matter of days as half a million Harleys and their riders come together in one big demonstration of enthusiasm/love for the cycle that made Milwaukee famous. (Hmm, that might have been another product’s slogan, but the saying goes for Harleys too.)

This statue of a Hill Rider, modeled after a rider and his competition cycle produced in 1930, stands at the entrance to the new Harley Davidson Museum. An H-D artist and enthusiast, Jeff Decker from Springville, Utah, created the bronze sculpture by welding 200 pieces together. It was unveiled earlier this summer at the Museum located just south of downtown Milwaukee.

If you love bikes, it’s a museum well worth your time.

Red Dancing Skirt

Red Dancing Skirt

Dancing Skirt © 2008

So you were maybe expecting a lovely dancer, draped dramatically in red. Here she is – a beautiful garden flower posturing in a rather fanciful flare.

Ever had the kind of week you don’t ever want to think about again? A week that evoked a sweep of emotions you’d rather not repeat in this lifetime?  A week filled with so many life lessons your brain was ready to explode with all that learning?

And then you turn the proverbial corner, and finally are able to breathe deeply – and move on.

I had that kind of week, and I’m relieved that the challenge – which at first seemed impossible to resolve – did get untangled. And then a little later, when the doorbell rang and I opened the door, the delivery kid handed me a paper package – an unmistakable, kite-shaped package filled with red flowers. And a box of dark chocolates, too.

Sometimes that’s how those kinds of weeks end. If you don’t give up and if you keep on taking that next step, you round that corner, and end up with solutions and flowers and chocolate.

Not that you need to have flowers and chocolate – solving a big problem is more than enough reward.

But, hey, I’m happy to have the flowers and candy, too.

Balloonflowers

Balloonflowers

Balloonflowers © 2008

This softly focused flower photo seems to capture the spirit of this flower for me. Soft and beguiling. The balloonflower, named after a balloon because the unopened flower looks like a tiny inflated balloon.

I wrote a poem, kinda clutzy, last summer about this flower.

Flower Balloon

garden plants, tightly closed bud,
blues burst forth, flower as the balloon pops open
hardy
long-lived
dependable

bursting balloons make children cry
and adults scrambling to dry flowing tears

not so in the garden

this flower makes me happy
reminding me of you
hardy
long-lived
dependable

love, too, bursts forth in all its glory.

Black-Eyed Susans

Balloonflower

Black-Eyed Susans © 2008

Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there.  ~ Thomas Fuller, Gnomologia, 1732

I think Thomas Fuller made a very true observation.

Since it is raining, with some much needed rain, thought I would post some sweet Susans from my backyard garden. A touch of sunshine in these ladies, no matter how inclement the weather.

Milwaukee Art Museum – Caught in Flight

Milwaukee Art Museum

Milwaukee Art Museum © 2008

Yes, this is Milwaukee. Isn’t she lovely?

This is the Quadracci Pavillion of the Milwaukee Art Museum, which hugs the shores of Lake Michigan in Milwaukee’s downtown, and has easily become a symbol for the revitalization of the city. The design, built in 2001, features a movable winged structure which stretches a magnificent 217 feet when it is open during the day. It closes, folding on itself, at night or during inclement weather.

The architect, Santiago Calatrava, is world-famous for his playfulness and the use of kinetic features. Some of his work, including both the Art Museum and the renowned Turning Torso in Sweden, is featured in this video. If you like buildings, but not your plain-old-ordinary rectilinear buildings, this guy does some amazing work that is art – in and of itself.