Urban Oasis

My hairdresser’s salon is on the southern edge of German Village, a lovely part of town which is described on the German Village website (http://germanvillage.com/about-2/history) as “a historic neighborhood just south of downtown Columbus, Ohio. The area was primarily developed between 1840 and 1914, and settled largely by German immigrants in the mid 1800s. Today, German Village is a model of urban neighborhood preservation and revitalization - a nationally recognized success story. The Village is mostly a residential neighborhood of sturdy, red-brick homes with wrought iron fences along tree-lined, brick-paved streets.” 
The salon is in an old brick home that, if not for committed neighbors, would look out onto a busy street, and beyond a glimpse of the Scioto River.
Last week, on a rare sunny day (rather than the wet, gray ones we’ve had), I drove up to see this:
   and this, across the street:

I left the edge of the billboard in the picture to help readers visualize what this spot would be like if not for my hairdresser’s neighbor, who has done all this by himself!  This is a one-man effort to beautify his city.  As luck would have it, my hairdresser was running a bit late, so I had time to grab my phone and dash across the street and take pictures of all this loveliness.

Oh, and it gets better…

And to think that all this abundance grows without a bit of mulch!

Every rusty, old hydrant needs tulips!  The contrast of such beauty against the chippy rusty surface of this most utilitarian object is lovely.

Then I walked back across the street to his yard, on my way back to the salon.  Notice the chain-link fence—even that feature adds charm and texture to his creation.

Back at the salon, shadows of the bamboo on the porch play against the brick.

A LOVELY spring afternoon at the hair salon!

How is your spring coming along?  Has it arrived, or has it been s-l-o-w to come?  Have you found any spring surprises that have brought you joy?  I hope so!

Thanks so much for visiting.  I hope you enjoyed this lovely example of one human being giving back to his community and bringing so much joy.

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