Colleen lives in Arligton, VA so we normally take the Metro everywhere. However, on Memorial Day we decided to walk to brunch since many of the elevators on the Orange Line (including the one at her home station) are being renovated. I'm really glad we decided to walk because it was a gloriously sunny day.
As we were strolling and chatting i noticed this cool face painted on the sidewalk.
Once i had my little pink camera out I decided to walk with it in my hand, just in case. I love walking with my camera because it really makes me look at my surroundings instead of letting the world pass through my eyes without making any impression.
From across the street i spotted a bed of flashing lights and silver movement. As we got closer i realized that it was a grassy plot covered with mirrored pinwheels spinning in the wind and reflecting the blazing sun. It really looked like an ocean of silver from afar. Up close it was about the prevention of child abuse, with each pinwheel representing one of the 352 cases of child abuse reported last year in Arlington County. I tried to capture how bright the mirror flashes were against the green grass, with little luck.
Looking around for pictures made me notice things that have been there all along, but i've never noticed : like the fact that there are different street lamps on different streets
and that there are a lot of fountains around these neighborhoods
There was a huge evergreen still covered with lights leftover from some holiday - one would suppose probably Christmas. Nestled among the branches were different shapes of houses and buildings that had been painted by children (
their names were written on the back). For the life of me i can't imagine what the holiday theme could have been or why they were still there in May.
As we were walking back from brunch we came across the Arlington War Memorial, with the American Legion conducting their Memorial Day service.
It was touching to see all of those guys out in their Legion hats, saluting their wounded and fallen comrades. It is history to us, but real life to them. I loved the touching poems and how carefully they handles the flags.
On such a beautiful and lazy day it was nice to be reminded why we have Memorial Day at all, and it isn't to sell mattresses. It was even worth the shrieking sunburn i got that is only peeling now.
Once i had my little pink camera out I decided to walk with it in my hand, just in case. I love walking with my camera because it really makes me look at my surroundings instead of letting the world pass through my eyes without making any impression.
From across the street i spotted a bed of flashing lights and silver movement. As we got closer i realized that it was a grassy plot covered with mirrored pinwheels spinning in the wind and reflecting the blazing sun. It really looked like an ocean of silver from afar. Up close it was about the prevention of child abuse, with each pinwheel representing one of the 352 cases of child abuse reported last year in Arlington County. I tried to capture how bright the mirror flashes were against the green grass, with little luck.
Looking around for pictures made me notice things that have been there all along, but i've never noticed : like the fact that there are different street lamps on different streets
and that there are a lot of fountains around these neighborhoods
There was a huge evergreen still covered with lights leftover from some holiday - one would suppose probably Christmas. Nestled among the branches were different shapes of houses and buildings that had been painted by children (their names were written on the back). For the life of me i can't imagine what the holiday theme could have been or why they were still there in May.
As we were walking back from brunch we came across the Arlington War Memorial, with the American Legion conducting their Memorial Day service.
It was touching to see all of those guys out in their Legion hats, saluting their wounded and fallen comrades. It is history to us, but real life to them. I loved the touching poems and how carefully they handles the flags.
On such a beautiful and lazy day it was nice to be reminded why we have Memorial Day at all, and it isn't to sell mattresses. It was even worth the shrieking sunburn i got that is only peeling now.
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