Wednesday, September 12, 2018

RAF- Rockdale Art Farm!



When someone says the letters R-A F, I hope that reminds you of the Royal Air Force in Britain. Being married to a Brit you might think that is why I always think of things from England but no, it is because I have read so much about World War II that I know about the RAF and have such a high regard for them.  If you don't know about the RAF and the Battle of Britain, please look it up and you will understand my meaning. The Battle of Britain Memorial Society is a good place to start, you may find it just here.  It is an amazing site to visit, please look at it!  After reading this, I hope you will also want to bow your head in remembrance at the sound of the letters...R.A.F! They quite simply saved the world. 

Mike at his blog "A Bit About Britain" had an amazing write up about the Battle of Britain...you may find it just  here.
(Go and read this.  You will be glad you did.)

Rockdale Art Farm here in Rockdale County can also be shortened to RAF.  Isn't it an exciting thing! A while back on one of our walks at Panola Mountain State Park, Richard and I spoke to one of the fellow walkers on the trail...he stopped and told us that he had plans to open a community arts center, but since it would be adjacent to the park, it would be connected with the natural world.  Would we be interested in getting involved with this arts center?  Would we!  Where do we sign up?
Not that we are important or anything, not wealthy or have great prestige...we are just people who love the outdoors and are  quite happy to share that love with others! I know that they plan to have a pollinator garden there and oh my goodness...that would be perfect for my husband! Why he is just the best gardener around, you should see all the bees and butterflies out my window as I type this! (Not to mention all the great photos that he can take.) Okay then, Kay, you are thinking...what can you do? Well, I can talk!  Oh my yes, I can tell others about this place and hopefully, the word will spread!

One thing though, the Rockdale Art Farm must have approval from Rockdale County first!
  Tomorrow evening, there will be a Rockdale Art Farm Rally at a local coffee shop which is just across the street from the Planning Commission meeting.   Then, we will walk across the street and hopefully will receive the support needed to convince the Board of Commissioners to issue the Special Use Permit so that the Rockdale Art Farm will get the go-ahead.  If so, then it should open in the spring of 2019.   (This will be voted upon on October 9th...which is just around the corner now!) 

(Note: Awake Coffee Co.  at 862 North Main Street on Sept. 13th,  from 5:30PM to 6:45PM.
The Planning Commission Public Hearing is at 7:00PM and is  across the street, on the corner of Main St. and Milstead Ave. at the Assembly Hall at 901 Main Street-this used to be the location of the Baptist church many years ago!)


Richard and I were able to go on a tour with Joe Eifrid (the nice man that I told you about earlier, the one that we met on our walk at Panola Moutain State Park.) and it is a lovely site. Thanks, Joe!  We met artists who had painted just a few pictures and they were truly amazing.  One had painted a view of an old house that was across the street and another had painted some scenes of a few old trucks that had been at the back of the property. My, that doesn't sound very exciting does it? But that is just the fault of my writing, those TRUCKS were jaw dropping, the colors that the artist could see in them!  And the old white house with the bushes curling around it, shaded in the old oak trees ...so pretty.  Why, you could just hear the bees buzzing!




                                Part of the Trail at Panola Moutain, near the RAF (we could see those old trucks through the trees that are on the property...never dreamed I would recognize them in a painting!)


Now, no one will ever ask me to do reviews of paintings, I am sure! Still, I hope that you can see a bit of what I am trying to tell you here.  I am sure that you will wish Joe the best of luck in trying to get this done.  We all have high hopes!  



UPDATE:  The Board approved the Special Use Permit!  It passed 4-1.  Now, it goes to the Board of Commissioners.  There really should be no reason that they will turn it down so... I hope to be able to tell you more about the RAF, the Rockdale Art Farm in future weeks!  Look out for my news! Thanks for all your well wishes, fellow art and nature lovers.


28 comments:

  1. How i hope this comes to fruition, it sounds like a marvelous asset to the community.

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  2. I like the curves in the road. It would make for a nice walk.

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    1. Ha, I just noticed that I had this same photo on one of my posts recently. Just goes to show, how much I liked this particular one, I guess! That trail goes for miles and miles.

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  3. Good luck to Rockdale Art Farm in getting its Special Use permit -- it will be a real boon to the community, that's easy to see!

    And yes, I always think of Royal Air Force when I see RAF. Before our armed forces were unified in the 1970s, we had the RCAF here -- Royal Canadian Air Force.

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  4. Love the idea of an Art Farm. i do hope it all happens for you, and will keep Fingers Crossed!

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    1. It will still need to be approved by the Board of Commissioners, but hopefully, that will happen too!

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  5. Sounds like it will be a wonderful place. Hope all goes well. Love the picture with the flower and the butterfly. Truly a work of art too.

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    1. OH! Thank you and guess what, I took that one! Richard takes most of the photos, but every once in a while, I will be inspired to take one and that butterfly against that blue sky did it for me. xx

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  6. The art farm sounds like a fantastic idea - I hope it all works out! I just came by to say thanks for your comment and best wishes, that roundhouse really was a great place to stay!

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    1. Hey Louise! Your post was amazing!! I know I will never be able to stay in a roundhouse so I appreciate seeing your photos of your stay there.

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  7. Hi Kay - it would be lovely to have the art farm up and running - sounds like an excellent idea - cheers Hilary

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    1. Thank, Hilary! And we will be thrilled to help with it as much as we can!

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  8. Well the R A F sounds like a very good idea so I do hope that it gets the Permit.

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    1. Yay! It passed 4-1! So you will hear more about this soon!

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  9. I do hope approval is swift. It is a place I would visit.

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  10. What a good idea and I hope the permit gets issued. We have to jump through so many hoops here waiting for city/state approvals for things. Hopefully, you will enjoy the RAF for many years to come. xo Diana

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    1. I didn't say but I think this was the THIRD time he has gone before the board trying to get approval! That was the reason for that choice of song! (And also because Rockdale Art Farm reminds me a bit of Rockdale ANT farm, you know how my crazy mind works, right Diana? Anyway, it DID pass, and it makes me very happy for Joe, knowing this must have been stressful for him. xx

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  11. Good luck, I am sure the Permit will be granted; why wouldn't it!
    We've come back last night from our hiking holiday in the Bavarian Forest; as soon as I have the time and occasion, there will be TONS of picutres of... wait for it... TREES on my blog :-)

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    1. Can't wait to see the trees from the Bavarian Forest! I am sure you had a great time. I missed you!

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  12. What a lovely idea! And how exciting. This is the kind of thing that really deserves to succeed. I hope you'll keep us updated on progress, Kay!

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    1. Oh yes, stay tuned, you know you will hear more about it! The permit was issued. It passed 4-1.

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  13. How very exciting! You must have been meant to meet this man on your walk. I hope everything will happen that is needed to make this Rockdale Art Farm a reality!

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    1. We hope so too and we hope that we can help in some small way to make it so.

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