Views of the Neighborhood – Stay at Home Orders Relaxed

May 10, 2020May 9, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 86 Comments

Since the governor of Texas relaxed the stay at home orders, I decided to go out into the world and see if folks were leaving their homes to do authorized activities. I hope you enjoy the stroll with me.

Views of the Neighborhood

The first stop Tennis courts. Yup folks on them

Foursome playing there.

Sign at the sand volleyball court. There is no one there. (Who wants to play a volleyball game with just two on a side. In the Olympics maybe.)

No one at the pool.

Five at the skatepark.

Practice green getting play.

Golf players

Snack bar players

This is the drive up food service at the country club.

Practice tee’s getting a workout.

The Greenbelt parking lot is jammed.

The city park has quite a few visitors.

The parking lot at the city park is full.

So I would say it looks like people are out and about. Thanks for coming along.

Views of the Neighborhood – Pots and Plants Flash Plant Sale

May 3, 2020May 2, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 103 Comments

This week’s view is of a special place. Since I am a member of the household that needs to stay home, The Producer bravely went to the event. She is the creative genius behind the photos.

Views of the neighborhood

Pots and Plants had a plant sale on Flamingo Drive in Lakeway, TX. They have a plant sale every March. This year it was extended into April. The flamingos have a storied past that included standing up to the city council when ordered to be removed. They were declared pieces of art and still remain. If you would like to read the whole story HERE is a link.

A signpost up ahead indicating the plant sale.

A far away shot of the pop-up (Flash) plant sale being held in the parking lot of an office building.

A little closer view of the rules. I think we all know the COVID-19 rules.

A shot of succulents.

A type of marigold.

Terrific looking annuals.

A collection of hanging baskets.

A closer look at a hanging basket.

Another hanging basket.

Collection of Bougainvilla.

How to take care of them.

Veggy plants.

A view of the selling space.

The home away from home Airstream where the proprietor’s stay.

Views of the Neighborhood – Humanity Part Two

April 26, 2020April 25, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 79 Comments

Our walk in the neighborhood turned up evidence that we humans have a sense of caring for one another. An anonymous person or persons left messages of hope throughout the Hamilton Greenbelt. This is the second of two parts since there were too many photos for one post. If you missed last week’s post, HERE is a link.

Views of the Neighborhood

The entrance to the Greenbelt.

Views of the Neighborhood

Our next sign. Yes, we are in this together.

An excellent place to dump your worries.

The answer just might be, “Yes.”

I just had to take a shot of the Lillie pads.

Hello and good-bye.

Waterfall.

Spillway. The sound here is fantastic.

Something we all need more of these days.

A hug and a kiss would be welcome too.

I like the little “Connect,” pointing to “Grateful.” Let’s hope when we can connect, we will be grateful.

Views of the Neighborhood

Here it is the end of our walk. I hope you all have a super week. Thanks for coming with me today.

Views of the Neighborhood – A Little Easter

April 12, 2020April 11, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 76 Comments

Since today is Easter Sunday, I thought I would venture forth and see who is celebrating and how.

Here is a traditional celebration of Jesus Christ’s resurrection.

More of an Easter Bunny view. Notice the bunny on the door.

A celebration of Hazel’s birthday.

The purple house has a Day-Glo skeleton in the window. This is new, so maybe it is an expression of some kind.

A celebration of the Easter Bunny and the hatching of a dinosaur. (Novel concept)

Some giant eggs waiting to be found. (Could be part of the dinosaur theme)

I just happened to pass these lovely roses walking Twiggy and thought I would throw them in.

And here we are. A full-blown in your face wish for a Happy Easter. I hope everyone is well and safe this Easter Sunday.

Views of the Neighborhood – A Rainy Day

April 5, 2020April 4, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 75 Comments

It was a rainy day yesterday, so today’s Views had to be something I more or less put together in the rain. I hope you brought your umbrella.

Views of the Neighborhood

I was going to do a feature on some unusual garden things. I got the first shot, and then, ,the rain came down in buckets. I thought this one was unusual. A pig, some ducks, and an armadillo on the mailbox.

I took a shot of the lake to show you how drizzly it was out here.

Twiggy was along for the walk but seemed to be focused on the puddles. Yes, she loved the rain on a leash. In the backyard, not so much.

Some peacock orchids in bloom

Another mother of all cactus.

A little bit of road work going on. This one is for Dan.

A stream that was a trickle before the rain.

This creek was running higher earlier in the day. All the sticks and leaves were left on high ground when the water receded.

A shot of wet leaves. (I know, I know. Getting desperate.)

The two players are still at it in the rain. This sculpture is named The Game.

A reminder to stay home. By the way, I saw no one while taking photos.

Well, there you have it. I hope you didn’t get too wet or bored. (Hey you wake up) Have a great week.

Views of the Neighborhood – Wildflowers

March 29, 2020March 28, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 64 Comments

Since spring is officially here The Producer and I decided to go out yesterday to see if the wildflowers have begun to bloom. We were pleased to be able to find that they were doing their best to bring a smile. I hope you enjoy the walk.

Views of the Neighborhood

On our way to the Greenbelt, we passed a beautiful hillside of Bluebonnets.

Then a bright red display of Poppies.

Next to the greenbelt trail, more Bluebonnets.

A lonely Hill Country Rain Lilly. I’m sure more will be along

My favorite thinking spot.

Some Cedar Sage.

Lovely delicate flower.

I thought this rock looked terrific.

Another unknown

These looked like berry flowers.

A beautiful resting spot with Bluebonnets.

A close up of a bluebonnet.

A bunch of daisies.

A path through the Bluebonnets

Beautiful wild yellow Iris and a few Lilly pads.

The everpresent sign indicating a picture opportunity.

I hope you enjoyed the walk.

Views of the Neighborhood – Bike Ride

March 22, 2020March 22, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 105 Comments

Views of the Neighborhood

Here I am on my bike. This is my only outside event so, I thought I would record some of the more unusual things seen while riding the neighborhood.

Views of the Neighborhood

Yes, that house and Jeep are purple. You can’t really see them, but there are purple lights around the tree as well.

“Trash day? Sure, toss that double sink. I’d rather use a bucket now that we are going third world.”

“Hey, dear. Where’s my office chair?” “I isolated it for your protection.”

“Just your ordinary deer in your ordinary yard.”

This old Jeep has to be a point of irritation in this house. Maybe some dirt and flowers would help.

New driveway and sod.

Never see a Pittsburgh Steelers sticker around here, so I had to take this one. Go Steelers.

A terrific armadillo mailbox decoration.

The murdered Crape Myrtle is coming to life.

Here is a yard wholly surrounded by cut firewood. Talk about stockpiling and expensive fencing.

Some napping flamingos

For the life of me, I have to wonder what a pig means to these folks.

Our final shot is a cement deer. This buck is very handsome and poses nicely for the photo.

So don’t ask what I’m going to do next week. I’ll just have to take it as it comes. Thanks for coming along. Have a great week.

Views of the Neighborhood – City Wide Garage Sale

March 15, 2020March 14, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 104 Comments

Views of the Neighborhood

Here we are back to the Activity Center In Lakeway for the City-Wide Garage Sale last weekend. I decided to cover the sale held here since this may be the last gathering of people for a while. I know I have done the sale before, but given the uncertainties of Covid-19, I didn’t think you would mind another go.

Views of the Neighborhood

“Can you take a quarter for this blanket?” The vendor looks like he might say, “No.”

I have a fascination with dishes that look like food. I’m wondering when someone will come up with food that looks like dishes.

Hey, Marylyn, you are beautiful, but a 2019 calendar may not work for me. Lots of other stuff, though. I like that bag of soap. Might come in handy, given all the handwashing that will go on.

There is a doll dress dummy that is interesting. I noticed that the red paper towel roll holder is empty. Pretty typical, I would say.

The vendor tried to run out of the photo. Trapped like a rat. That wine bucket caught my eye. Reminded me of a large restaurant where the waiter rushed out with the wine on ice. In times like these, the wine doesn’t stay around long enough to get warm. (“Sure, bring another bottle.”)

Lots of art here. “Can we really live without that pink lamp?” Don’t even mention the Emelda Marcus shoe collection. That fern needs water or a dusting. Such treasures.

Ah, the dress dummy. Every home should have one. My eye also went to the basket of phony tomatoes wrapped in cellophane. A must-have for sure.

Thanks for going along with me today. Here take this Purell. You can never be too careful. Next time we will do an outside tour.

Views of the Neighborhood – Elementary School Art

March 8, 2020March 7, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 57 Comments

Views of the Neighborhood

The Lake Travis Community Library featured a display of Elementary School children. Of course, I wanted to give you an idea of the talent of these children. I have to say the room in which the art was displayed was not conducive to photos. There were way too many lights and the art was framed behind plastic. So below is the best I could do. I did not bring an umbrella which would have helped. There are glare spots but hopefully, you will get an idea of the talent.

This is a fifth-grade student’s piece.

An amazing 3rd-grade piece

I have to confess I can’t read the grade levels on these. I think the top two might be 4th grade. The bottom left 3rd grade and the bottom right 5th. The producer went back to the library to get better shots of the grade levels and unfortunately, there was a meeting going on in the room where the art was displayed.

Top right and left 4th grade. The bottom left 2nd grade. The bottom right 4th grade

Top 4th grade. Bottom 3rd grade.

This one I remember. The top left is kindergarten. Top right 2nd grade and bottom 4th grade

All 5th graders.

I think you will agree that these are very talented kids. Thanks for going with me.

Views of the Neighborhood – Looking for Spring

March 1, 2020February 29, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 79 Comments

Since not too much s going on in Lakeway this week, I set out to see if I could find signs of spring. Well, I did find a few, but not many. I hope you enjoy it anyway.

Views of the Neighborhood

The first thing I found was something that is not too common here in our part of the neighborhood. This is a large Red Bud tree. The photo is unusual cause this Redbud is growing on a lot where the house is being renovated, and the port-a-potty is right below it. I needed to crop that out.

Views of the Neighborhood

Next is a Texas Mountain Laural growing in a shopping center parking area. The tree is in full bloom with lovely grape colored blossoms.

Here is another Mountain Laural in full bloom.

A shot of the Winter Jasmin in bloom (Usually blooms in January )

Views of the Neighborhood

A large Mountain Laural in full bloom.

Views of the Neighborhood

Here is a Mountain Laural in my backyard. Notice it has a whole bunch of buds but has not begun to bloom as yet. except for the one in the close up below.