The Avant Garden

I think part of the reason I am digging this Spring is because it is raining. In the droughty Southeast, to walk in the rain twice a week is sweet.

 I went back to Bent Creek to find that the Unphotographable Herd of Arches were all still standing

-- OOOOPS -- lightning alert. More typing later. Gotta power down. 

Back. Now where was I? Bent Creek. The past two times I had been out there (it's a 38-mile roundtrip) the Unphotographable Herd of Arches had been knocked over, and the last time, there was a dead stinky snake in the midst of them. This time, they were OK and we all rejoiced. I fixed the Roadside Serpent and took this photo from downstream:
'Robusto' would be his middle name if he had one. But he doesn't.

 Later that day, I came across two creations of different material looking as if they were engaged in serious conversation:

Precocious little guys, aren't they? Maybe they were and we just didn't hear it. I picked up a hint of SEC football discussion.

The 15-stoner from last entry:  
It's about 6 feet tall. I want it taller, but Rob says I have to wait until it falls to mess with it.
 

did indeed fall, so I had an opportunity to rebuild it. I added three more stones (to the bottom, of course) and made it about 9 inches taller (as the crow flies).
I had a little discussion with it at 15-stones:
Photo courtesy Rob Quayle 

and went on to add three more:
I had one eye one it the whole time. Rob took the photo.

 We were feeling quite close and cuddly when it was all over with, and Rob took this intimate photo of us.

 Yesterday I went back to Rob's section of the River and reassembled this downed arch on pedestal:

It's a cell phone photo. The River temp is up to around 70F and the water is low, so I hope to be in the Swannanoa a lot soon.

This was one of the coolest things I have seen in the past two weeks, at least: 

I found it at this Web site, but it offers no hint on who the creator might be. 

I saw my first 17-year Cicadas while repairing one of my neighbors' arches:
Handsome Devil, ain't he?

His little Japanese Maple had 17 Cicadas in various forms of growth hanging on its limbs. He was so happy to have his arch repaired that he gave me a bumper sticker that just says, "I'mSpatial." I think you have to be a Southerner to get it, and even then you have to be thinking a bit on the obtuse side. I put it on the Avant Garden mobile. 

Photos for this particular blog entry were taken with four different cameras, now that I look at it.  We embrace diversity in the Avant Garden.