Folk Art Landscaping

Walk: to Bright Yellow house on 700 East and back

Distance: 14 blocks

Duration: 50 minutes

Thoughts: It was weird how, as I approached the house, I carefully composed my face into an "I LOVE what you're doing with plastic and gold spray paint" and tried to banish all expression of "You are fascinatingly creepy and weird for decorating your porch with Barbie's dream car and plastic flowers." Both emotions completely true, but I know that one is offensive, so I banish it to the recesses of my brain because I wish to avoid conflict. This house, with its classic white-plastic garden chairs spray painted gold, it's display of Minnie Mouse stuffed animals in the upper windows, its God Bless America sign and garden statuary is a fabulous piece of art. What are the rules of putting stuff in your yard? The gaudy over-spillage and decay of one house can be completely appealing, while the drab over-spillage and decay of another (right behind my own house), tends to get me pissed off in a self-righteous white middle-class kind of way. What's that about?

On the way to the Yellow House, we passed the drinking fountain at Liberty Park and Shed danced and caught water droplets from the air as I jetted the fountain with my thumb. Ida watched glumly because I would not let her keep Shed in line by biting his ankles.