Around town: July 9-13

It's Friday evening, it's storming, and I have a dog curled up next to me who is giving a paws-down to thunder.

In other news, I've been trying to squeeze most of my longer runs in before work, both because of the heat later in the day and because I wanted my evenings free for our visitors. While I will revel in the extra zzzs when cooler weather rolls around, there is an undeniable thrill in participating in as many hours of daylight in the summer possible. Minnesotans are darn good at savoring this season. They're just outside more, and that makes my miles fun because everything is so much more lively around the city this time of year.

1) No lemonade stand sightings recently, but I do like the sidewalk art.

2) There's also a sign that has sprung up at a busy St. Paul intersection to give drivers some extra help with directions to various destinations, local and far-flung.

I'd ask you to pardon the grungy lighting in that photo, but it does sort of capture how dazed and thrilled I felt at, like, 6:30 in the morning when I stumbled across it, stopped and just squinted at it for awhile. Who made this? Why did he or she put it here?

I just love it, partly because it reminds me of this project from Nat's wedding:

3) There is an elderly lady who I see once or twice per week walking her dog along one of my running routes. She says hello and then without fail adds, "Have a good day!" which is A. a sweet message early in the morning, when the day is young and B. always gives me a little spring in my step that yes, I will have a good day.

4) Finally, I ran by a beautiful garden I must have passed a thousand times but have never noticed. I remembered what Sara said once about being flattered when she saw a passerby photographing one of her flowers, so I set aside my hesitation to loiter next to someone's lawn early in the morning and snapped a photo.

What. The. Heck. Are those purple plants?  Can anyone help?  I adore them.

Oh, Reader, there are even more grand sights, but I didn't have my phone along with me on those routes to grab photos for you, so they'll just have to wait for another Around Town installment.

Now it's your turn, Reader: are there any lively sights around your neighborhood that you're enjoying this summer? You know I'd like to hear about them.