St. Mary's Condos

St. Mary's Condos by Finijo

I had a little accident a couple of days ago, so I spent yesterday doing all of the follow up that follows up an accident. I met with the adjuster, dropped my car off at the dealership for repairs, and picked up a rental car. BTW - Chevy Aveos (my rental) are cute, but ultimately crap cars.

St. Mary's Condos Courtyard by Finijo

Which leads me to these pictures. Joy, my Enterprise leasing agent, had to drive me to someplace off of 45 South to pick up the car and once again my stellar sense of direction caused me to get turned around and end up off of the 610 South Loop East in error. Before eventually finding my way home, I ran across St. Mary's Condos. You can imagine that the larger than life St. Mary caught my eye from the feeder road next to the freeway - so, I had to stop and take pictures of this amazing scene. Note the small black hand chair with crimson fingernails among the cement benches/pews.

St. Mary's Condos Courtyard 2 by Finijo

Someone has gone to a lot of trouble to set up an outdoor chapel. This is the most spectacularly kitchy place I have seen in a long time. It is reminiscent of something from the 1950's that you might find on Route 66 or in some backwater town in podunk Arkansas, but not along a bustling freeway in Houston, Texas. I can't help but wonder if they would let me take pictures during a service...

Obama Commentary

I was driving on S. Shepherd today when I saw this commentary on Obama. I posted the Obama mural a few weeks ago, so I thought I would post this, also, since it is essentially the same image - well, not any more.

Red Bull Art

Redbull Art photograph by Finijo

I noticed this bit of Houston art on a strip mall building on S. Rice over the weekend. I was able to get back to it today and take this photo. It really is striking because of its scope and its funky subject matter.

Kosen Rufu Day

Water Tree by Finijo

Connor and I went to the Kosen Rufu Day event for SGI at the University of Houston at Clear Lake. It was a beautiful day and I got a lot of pictures of some statues at the university and also of a park that we visited afterwards.

Water Trunk by Finijo

The day was overcast and blustery, but it was beautiful and we enjoyed being outside near the water and amid the trees.

Three Birds by Finijo

I loved how these three birds lined themselves up and just sat there like that for the longest. This video is not the best, but it shows some of the park and Connor and Emerson . Connor is pointing out how there are some coat hangars with pantyhose on them submerged in the lake.

Yucky Day

Not sure if it is just hormonal, but today seemed to be pretty crappy. I know things will look up tomorrow, but today they just didn't. Maybe it was a phase of the moon, because several people I talked to today seemed to be having the same experience.

On the way to an appointment this morning, I got stuck in traffic due to the accident that is depicted in these photos.

It seemed bad, but I was really surprised to see the 18 wheeler on it's side and these giant cement cylinders out on the freeway.

At the appointment, I was stood up by both clients, so I just twiddled my thumbs for an hour and a half. I was finally able to reach one of them and he managed to spare 20 minutes for me.

I got to work and snapped a shot from my new assigned parking space for my agency car. I am facing the building off in the distance (behind the trees) where I have to walk to get to my office. I have very little motivation to use that vehicle at this point unless I am transporting others. I know I am bitching at this point, but today was pretty yucky and I am counting on tomorrow being better. At least it will be Friday.

Objects of Devotion

Today I was out and about for work and while I was waiting on a client, I was able to snap some pictures. I thought this mural in a really run down part of town (off of Canal Street near downtown) was very colorful and hopeful.

I also enjoyed this yard "art" by a home owner near Hays Street in Fifth Ward. I was able to get pretty close to the display and was struck by the various objects that were arranged for the public's viewing pleasure.

There is a variety of religious objects, steer skulls, sea shells, cacti, succulent plants and ceramic bric-a-brack. If you click on the photo, it will enlarge and you can see that the creator of the display has placed a carousel and a windmill among the rocks. This kind of display fascinates me because it is like peeking into someone's mind or soul. Nobody can really explain it except for the person who created it.

Enshrinement

My Gohonzon was enshrined today and it was an interesting and wonderful experience. My altar did not arrive, but we put together a temporary altar, so it went off without a hitch. I was not sure exactly what was involved with the enshrinement, but it was pretty simple and not a lot of pomp and circumstance (which was more than fine with me). We chanted and did our Gongyo and the Gohonzon was enshrined in the butsudan. Then we all sat around and talked for a bit. If there had been more to it, I might have felt weird about it. This is all new to me and I am glad that I am involved in a form of Buddhism that is laid back. I don't think I could be comfortable with a lot of ceremony for the sake of show - it would make me uncomfortable.

Derelict Buildings

Gash by Finijo

While out in the city today, I took some pictures of derelict buildings. These are some of my favorites. I thought that the sky through the gash in the facade of the Tennison WFO CO building was striking.

Tennison WFO Co by Finijo

This building was in the process of being hollowed out by a demolition crew. The inside is all gnarled steel and broken bricks and cement. I think the outside of the building was holding up remarkably well considering what was happening on the inside. It reminds me a little bit of The Alamo.

Rusted Pipe by Finijo

I especially liked the contrasting materials in this photo. The lush greenery that sprouted up through the cracked, barren cement against the red of the bricks (which look almost as vivid as they must have the day they were laid) and the deep russet of the rusty pipe was quite striking to me.

Stuffed Elephant by Finijo

I was surprised to find a stuffed elephant hanging from the bars on one window and a stuffed pink dinosaur hanging from another. Odd since both windows were boarded from the inside.

Iron Cross Window by Finijo

I thought this window looked like it was some kind of forbidding religious symbol with the iron cross in the center. This building is so solid and well built, that it is still very beautiful, if you really look at it.

Window Plant by Finijo

This view would look like someone put a potted plant out on their balcony, if it weren't for all of the boarded up windows. It was fascinating to find this building downtown has been seeded with all kinds of vegetation as it sat in decay over the years. There are parts of it that are teeming with plants, and I would hazard to guess other life forms, as well.

Rocky Racoon Rides Again

As I was walking through the parking lot at work, I did a double take when I passed this truck. I have no idea why they have a giant stuffed racoon strapped to a plastic chair, which is strapped into the bed of their truck - but I am glad that they do. It makes for a neat photo op and it made me laugh. I forgot to check my settings before taking the shot and ended up filming it instead of photographing it.

Derelict Beauty

This was once a beauty salon called Carmen's. I have driven by the closed down husk of a business countless times over the last 20 years and I cannot remember it being open any during that time.

Today I decided to take some shot of the exterior, because I like the mossy green color, and the fact that nobody has bought the building/land in all this time is intriguing to me.

I was quite surprised as I approached the side door to find it not only open, but also to find the contents of the beauty salon still inside the building.

I had to go in for a peek. I was really surprised at what I found. Not only are the original work stations and chairs still in the building, but it seems like someone has taken shelter in the building recently. If you click on the picture, you will find a couple of cans of corn, a can of sardines and other items used by the occupant.

I went into a few rooms and found that the bathroom had a fresh roll of toilet paper and some bleach. The faded sign on the wall says,"Please throw paper in waste basket, not in commode." It was surprising that there is no bad smell in the place at all, so the water in the bathroom must still be running. It made me a little sad to think that someone is staying there - but even sadder to think that they probably came from a decent enough background to feel compelled to hang the toilet paper and to clean the bathroom with bleach.

Gohonzon Day

I got my Gohonzon today! Now I have officially joined Soka Gakkai. I was honored by everyone's generosity and support at the conferring of the Gohonzon at the district Women's Meeting. I was very moved when I was offered both a butsudan and an altar, neither of which was expected, but both are very much appreciated. I am very pleased and excited about having made the choice to participate in SGI. I feel like today is a very auspicious beginning to a new phase in my life.

Dementor Moss

These trees look like Dementors when the wind blows through them.

Dementory Moss 2 by Finijo

The Spanish Moss has over taken the trees and you can hear their branches creaking under the weight of the parasitic moss. Dementor Moss by Finijo

These trees are almost dead and I would not be surprised to find them breaking apart in the next year or so.

Birds on Wires

Birds on Wires by Finijo

When I picked Connor up this evening, we started to drive down the street and he exclaimed, "Whoa!"

Birds on Wires 2 by Finijo

I looked up and in the beautiful Texas sunset, I saw more birds than an Alfred Hitchcock movie could would know what to do with.

Birds on Wires 3 by Finijo

I swung into the parking lot at the CVS on the corner and started snapping away. They were incredibly loud and chatty, and it was just a marvelous site.

The Medium is the Message

I was sent this time lapse video of the making of the Obama mural by PR!MO of LecheQuemada, which does great video projects. Thank you, PR!MO. Nice job on the video, too! I was wondering who was responsible for the great Obama mural - and now I know. The mural was painted by: GONZO247, Christian Azul, Mr. Bristle & Reginald Adams, and the artwork is by: Shepard Fairey. I just watched Shepard Fairey on The Henry Rollins Show a few weeks ago and had no idea that the mural was his design when I happened upon it last week. I voted in the primary for Hillary, but I have to support artists - especially in Houston. He's right in the video - the medium is the message.

Cigarettes Beer Milk Mural

Milk Bread Cigarettes Beer Mural - Photo by Finijo

I have been noticing a lot of unconventional art in the form of murals lately. This mural is on the side of a convenience store on W. Belfort. I suppose this could represent the four basic food groups for some people. I like the idea that there is so much art around Houston and hope to continue blogging it as I find it.