Greensboro Daily Photo

Guilford Courthouse National Military Park

When the winter weather is nice in Greensboro, nothing beats heading to one of our parks or the greenway for a bike ride. Here we are at the entrance of Guilford Courthouse National Military Park. The signage marks the 2 1/4 mile bike trail, clearly.  

Next month will be time for the reenactment of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. We recommend riding the trails this month to learn the lay of the land, so that on reenactment weekend, you will be able to move from point A to point B efficiently. Greensboro has many active cycling groups, check with one of the bike shops if you want to find a group of cyclists at your level. Have a great weekend everyone. Hope to see you out on the trail. 

Greenway Fisher Park Apartments

Construction is officially underway for a downtown apartment complex in the Northwest corner of the city. The Greenway Fisher Park Apartments (GFPA) are located on 4.2 acres at the former North State Chevrolet site near the baseball stadium. It is also adjacent to the Greenway loop and historic, Fisher Park. The Jones brothers are building five, three-story brick apartment buildings that will have a clubhouse, fitness center, a saltwater pool, and more. Costing about 10 million dollars, the facility is a major investment on a piece of property that has been dormant for a long time. It will be interesting to monitor the progress of this newest addition to the skyline. At least until the empty showroom/garage across the street is developed, GFPA residents will have a great view of the ballpark and the historic Jefferson Standard Building. To further orient you, notice the Paisley Street sign. We were standing here when the photo was taken.

We love seeing the insides of buildings before they get covered up by their façades. Right now, the construction site is looking beautifully green-- especially striking when the sun is low in the sky. See media coverage of the 196 high-end apartment complex here. We're sharing this with Skywatch Friday. It would be really nice to have some of those wires, lacing through the skyline, go underground.  Have a great weekend, dear readers!

Glenwood Coffee & Books

Glenwood Coffee & Books, located at 1310 Glenwood Avenue, is a great resource and retail space in the heart of the Glenwood community. Not only can you get a good cup of coffee there and find a great book to to buy, you can enjoy music and get involved in community events. Occupy Greensboro made many posters in the back room and continues to meet there. The space is likely to appeal more to the arts-loving, liberal-minded crowd. Every community needs good, independent bookstores. If you are interested in learning more about the bookstore, "like" their Facebook page or stop by when you get a chance. We hope to get by, soon, and interview the owner. He has been involved in indie bookstores for several, several decades. 

The bookstore is located very near the community garden in Glenwood (featured here in 2009). Where do you go to learn what is happening in Greensboro? 

B is for Blindness

Today's photo takes us to the Industries of the Blind (IOB), Inc. on West Lee Street. This building houses a stalwart group of people committed to being self sufficient and having a good quality of life even with being visually impaired. In our recent post, we mentioned that IOB has been doing great work in Greensboro for over seven decades. The above photo, taken with the bright, end-of-day sun behind us, contrasts greatly with our previous glaring, night shot. Above, a woman is turning because something caught her eye. We could tell by the pace at which she was walking and her quick, furtive look that she could see.

If you are reading this post without an adaptive device, count your blessings. If you are reading this with an adaptive device, count your blessings! According to the National Federation of the Blind, 1.3 million Americans are blind, 93,600 of whom are school-aged children. Over 20 million Americans have cataracts; 9 million have age-related macular degeneration; and over two million have glaucoma (reference). For Round 10 of ABC Wednesday, GDP us featuring A-Z causes; this week is B for blindness. In the previous post on the topic, Janis (of Southern California) typed a testimonial for the important work of IOB. CA Janis says........

"For each of the people IOB employs, a bucket full of self esteem is brought home. A productive job means the world to their well being. I know this for a fact because my Dad was almost totally blind. Since this was the result of a baseball injury at age 17 he knew what it was to work, to drive,to go to the movies on a Saturday night. First he groomed race horses and took them for their cool down walks at Santa Anita, later he was a Taxi cab dispatcher which was really perfect work for him since he knew the town well and everybody who lived here, after that he worked at a mobile home factory and the local school district.

His blindness was a gift to me. I learned to read aloud before I ever entered Kindergarten by reading him the sports pages and local news. He would tell me what to look for and sound out words with me. I learned geography and to love travel even though we rarely left California because he would pull out the big Map Book from Rand McNally and we would take armchair trips all over the world, gauging mileage, times, what to see, where to dine-- every little detail was planned. I was probably the only second grader who could navigate the way to Ames, Iowa but could not find the restrooms for the upper playground at lunch."

Revolution Cotton Mills

We've featured Revolution Cotton Mills previously; however, we love this view of the red tower at the end of the street. Revolution Cottin Mills were built in 1899 and were part of a 2 million square foot complex in northeastern Greensboro and harken back to the day when Greensboro was a national center of the textile industry. If you ever get a chance to walk around the structure, you will be amazed at the strength and durability of the construction. For the safety of the workers and for insurance purposes, the mills needed to be built according to "slow-burning" specifications: Watertight floors, spaces separated by brick firewalls, and extra sturdy support timbers (read more here).

The facility is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and with the help of Historic Preservation tax credits, it continues to be renovated and repurposed. We owe you a look of the inside of the facility. We owe OURSELVES a look on the inside and we'll put it on our to do list. In the meantime, if you are looking for office, event, or meeting space, this is a great place to start! This brick facility is solid as a rock, and, with proper care, should last at least another century!

Old Guilford County Barn

Here we see a barn in Northwest Guilford County on a cold, colorless winter day. At one time, this wooden building was a full-service barn on a thriving farm. Now, it looks like most structures in the holding pattern of "tear down" status; the land is more valuable than the buildings on it. Before you know it, this acerage will be a new neighborhood, named by a naming consultant for what used to be on the property (Falling Barn Trace, Weather Vane Estates, Grassy Meadow Farms, Gatewood Estates etc.). Regardless, the barn exudes a haunting, poetic aura and the scene looks like something Andrew Wyeth would paint-- especially if someone were walking towards the horizon..............

Happy Monday folks. This week starts the first of about eight weeks in a row without a holiday or teacher work day. However, it is starting to seem like old-man winter has a weather event in his back pocket. If it snows, we're heading back to this barn to get some snow photos. 

The Y Bus

Happy Sunday, the day we like to post something spiritual, religious, or reflective-- essentially, living a life that is meaningful beyond ourselves. Today, we've chosen a photo of children riding the YMCA bus during the 2012 Martin Luther King, Jr. Parade. 

YMCA stands for Young Men's Christian Association. According to their website, the YMCA was founded in London in 1844 by George Williams and 11 of his friends. Initially, they provided a Bible-study/refuge to get young men off of the streets. The unique aspect of the early YMCA was that it the crossed rigid social lines of English society. In 1851, ten years before the Civil War, Thomas Valentine Sullivan, a retired Boston sea captain, formed a YMCA in Boston, the first in the USA. 

In 2010, the Chicago-based, non-profit organization changed its name to "Y" in an effort to clarify their mission of strengthening communities by "focusing on youth development, healthy living and social responsibility" (reference), regardless of gender (M/men's) or religious background (C/christian). They have grown to serve 10,000 neighborhoods. Today, the Y  programs enhance the health and well-being of people from all walks of life; from cradle to grave. From the looks on the faces of these young members, the Y accomplishing its mission is a positive, nurturing place. 

 

Jenn's Diner

The cold, battleship-gray little place at 3929 North Battleground Avenue, formerly known as Waffle House, just got a facelift and is now Jenn's Diner. Since opening a few weeks ago, it has been non-stop busy and has added life to a little section of Highway 220 that was starting to look and feel empty.  If someone can build on the Laddie and Dukes lot and replace the corner drug store, there will be a nice oasis of activity at the corner of Battleground and Horse Pen Creek.

Looking inside and seeing the warm, orange walls, the artwork, and the TV, it is hard to believe that the place used to be a Waffle House Chain. The home-style, country-cooked entrees and classic diner breakfasts are a hit. This photo, taken at night, reflects the warm, inviting, glow of Jenn's Diner. 

Here's to this young couple making a go of their dream. Nothing beats an on-site proprietor. We've spotted enough of a reflection on the ceiling to feel worthy of Weekend Reflections!