Unbagging the Cats 1

Unbagging the Cats 1

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Aesthetics is in the Eye of the Beholder

I saw the most amazing sight today!

I was on the way to town for some last-minute Christmas shopping. There's a connecting road that cuts by an elementary school. The school is set off that thoroughfare about a quarter of a mile, and has its own access road. Every morning, I fear that one of their speeding school buses will dart out in front of me.

Today I noticed that someone had put a marker by the access road. You know how people sometimes pound a stake into the ground with a reflector, or stack up some white concrete blocks, or plant an old tractor tire full of pansies right beside their driveway entrance? Or maybe you don't, not being from Backroads. But play along with me. It makes the edge of the driveway easier to spot, so folks don't run off in a ditch. I assumed that was the purpose of this school road marker.

It was a beauty, too. Bright white, with a red-clay-colored pattern. I'll be darned, if it didn't remind me of a Grecian urn, or a Ming vase. "People in this district go all-out on their road markers! That's pretty fancy stuff for these parts." This flitted through my tiny mind in a matter of seconds. Then I was upon it.

It was a PVC pipe sewer vent, splattered with dried, red-clay mud.

Not this:


But this:




In my mind, the world is a much more beautiful place.

7 comments:

Bailey Hammond said...

Nice pipe. I need me one of them there to things to impress my neighbors. They have geese and pelican lawn ornaments out front to greet their guests and random passerby. Our yard needs a little spiffy PVC addition to keep up.

Linda O'Connell said...

Oh my, you make me laugh.

Sioux Roslawski said...

How about putting a Santa outfit on that pipe to dress it up? You can donate an ensemble every season/holiday...

Val said...

Bailey,
There's one of you on every block. Try to keep up with the Joneses, dear.

*************
Linda,
At least I'm good for ONE thing.

*************
Sioux,
Well, I don't think I could top the Ming vase ensemble.

Tammy said...

Hooray for those rose-clay-splattered glasses. Picture #1 is way prettier.

C D Meetens said...

A ming vase sounds like a much better way to see the road marker than PVC and mud. I like your vision.

Val said...

Tammy,
If police chose me to identify perps, they'd be hauling out 8 x 10 Glamour Shots instead of mug shots.

*********************
C D,
An even better way to see it would be with a sign on it proclaiming: "Full of silver and gold. Help yourself!"