Welcome to my (work) neighborhood

In my past life, I used to drive to the airport most Monday afternoons. Often, especially in nice weather, I'd see folks from the surrounding office parks out for a lunchtime stroll. I'd think to myself, 'Bhan, that looks nice.' I'm here to assure you it is. 

Every day around noon I walk a 1.5-mile route through the neighborhood around my workplace. Usually a coworker accompanies me; sometimes I make calls to friends who don't work, figuring they might have time mid-day to chat. (Ahem... Regan. Call me back, bro!)

Along the way, I encounter interesting people, lovely sights, and one very special dog.

Meet Emma, whose parents graciously let her enjoy the fresh air from within their fenced yard. When she sees me approaching, Emma freaks out in her own understated way. I give her ears a scritch and coo at her for a moment before pressing on.

Farther down the block, I pass a home which is clearly under construction. Building permit posted on a front window, ladders strewn about, temporarily mismatched windows, and stretches of missing siding. Nothing out of the ordinary about that... till you realize the resident(s) is (are) living in a tree house on the back of the property.

The route I walk features tree-lined streets with impeccably cared-for single family homes. All summer, I shared the sidewalks with kids on bikes and carefully stepped around chalk hopscotch games.

This town takes good care of public spaces, right down to these large planters. 

Nice, right? Wrong. AWESOME. The lovely chartreuse heart-shaped leaves draping over the side of the container is actually a small cluster of sweet potato plants (link: edible ornamental sweet potatoes). Last autumn, I happened to be out for a stroll when the city maintenance guy was swapping out the summer plants for fall trimmings. He harvested the sweet potatoes and was kind enough to give 5 or 10 pounds to my coworker and me. I promptly sliced mine and made a potato pizza.