Gazebo at Lake Susan

As you walk along the dam at Lake Susan, it's nice to see a sweet little gazebo.  Many of the stone pillars are given plaques which speak of memory of someone who donated to this structure.

Basilica of St. Lawrence, Asheville, NC

Sepia Saturday, HERE, shows a dome from the Library of Congress.  (If you chose to add your own blog post, just go to the bottom of the Sepia Saturday page, where various names are listed, and you can click on each of them to see other blogs about mainly this theme, and add your own, easy peasy)

Nice.

Here's our local dome.  It and the entire building is made entirely of bricks and mortar...a freestanding elliptical dome with a span of 58 feet by 82 feet.  Rafael Gustavino, the architect, worked on the Biltmore house as well, here in Asheville.

Wikipedia says this about the dome of the Basilica of St. Lawrence -

The basilica was designed and built in 1905 by Spanish architect Rafael Guastavino along with his fellow architect R. S. Smith and the surrounding Catholic community of Asheville, North Carolina. The Basilica is on the National Register of Historic Places and was elevated in status to a Minor Basilica in 1993 by Pope John Paul II. The basilica is the only basilica in Western North Carolina. The basilica's dome has a span of 58 by 82 feet (18 by 25 m) and is reputed to be the largest freestanding elliptical dome in North America

A publication by the Basilica gives more information HERE.

All photos are from Wikimedia commons.

Tours are available, and I have already enjoyed one.  Photos are allowed while walking through the building also.

Lake Susan

All the buildings you see here belong to Montreat College, in Montreat NC [elevation 2,615 ft (797 m)].  The lake is dammed up and gives overflow of Flat Creek, which comes into it from higher elevations, then flows down to Black Mountain at a slightly lower elevation [2,405 ft (733 m)] 

Tomorrow, the dam.

Clear waters

Snow is melting above these waters...they have the great clear tint of turquoise every once in a while that is different.  It surprised me, reminding me of the colors in icebergs.  Nowhere near us!

I see it on the outside of the white water flowing into the pool. 

Public Works workers did it

Added to the Memorial Gardens at the entrance to Montreat, is a new sitting arrangement.  One stone is in honor of a Public Works Director. The blank stone across from it, and behind the two sitting benches says "In Memory of Those who have Served the Town of Montreat."  It is blank below that heading.

You might like to know that Montreat has more retired Presbyterian ministers than imaginable, as well as a Christian College.  And I guess that the people who have moved these huge flat stones into this arrangement must have been public works workers.  They get to make the town beautiful for all the people who visit and live there.  So to have a special spot for the people who have served it's public works says a lot for the town.  I'm impressed.

Pizza downtown Black Mountain

If you are walking among the stores in Black Mountain's downtown, this is the easiest Pizza place to find.

It may have a convoluted entrance (once you enter the door you walk down a long hall, then descend a set of stairs to the eating area)...but it's worth it.

And on a Sunday afternoon in Feb. it was actually warm enough to sit outside (mainly in the sunshine) to eat.

Of course there are great salads, but when I go to a pizza restaurant, I usually have some pizza!

And bring some home.  My friend and I had a selfie taken at the entrance, but she probably wouldn't talk to me again if I posted it here...though I think she looks better than my half face does.    It was fun.

He liked posing

I just wish I'd caught a picture of the little boy who walked up behind me, said politely, "Excuse me, Ma'am, that's a heron."
It's a good place for him to drink water, and escape the maddening crowd, when the fountain is turned off at Lake Tomahawk.

My new desktop wallpaper

Guess which one of these photos I now look at on my computer's desktop.

Grandmother Oak Part last

Ground crew was busy with all the fallen limbs...I won't take pictures of a chipper.  I had to listen to it going for 2 whole days.  There's a certain whine in its motor that sets my teeth on edge.

The view Wed. morning, and with the sun behind the cutter, it was a bit hard to take pics of his work.  Notice the garbage hasn't been picked up.  Beech St. is a one truck street, and the garbage truck has to back up it, 'cause there's no room to turn around at the top.  The chipper truck was blocking half the street, so I wondered if we'd get any garbage pick up...but after the chipper left, the great collection truck did arrive.  They don't get enough credit in my mind, for a job that's very important in our lives.  Just think what it would be like without garbage pick up.  But I digress...

He's looking down as a limb falls.  I tried without much luck to catch one as it fell.

Wish I had stayed out there to see the final top part go...but I did have other things to do.

Grandmother oak, part 2

Yes, there's more to fall.  Continued tomorrow.  And I think I'll have a bit higher resolution on the photos...these are a bit small!  For such a large subject!