Some things with wheels and others without

I currently live in a rental house in Chattanooga. The second day I lived here a man came up to me and offered to cut my grass and introduced himself as Mr. Fred. We didn’t own a mower yet so I accepted his generous offer. Once he finished we sat on the porch and talked for a long time. I am decades younger than Mr. Fred, one of us is white and one of us is black, and we’ve lived dissimilar lives, but we quickly realized we have something in common that we bonded over: we’re both veterans of our beloved United States Marine Corps.

Mr. Fred is extremely generous and hardworking. I see him around our neighborhood often and he’s always chatting with folks, picking up litter, and mowing people’s grass. He is a good friend and he is easily my favorite of my eclectic array of neighbors. This first painting is of Mr. Fred’s organized backyard, because I think it’s one of the most visually interesting still lifes I’ve ever stumbled across.

“Some Things With Wheels and Others Without No. 1” is on permanent display in the private collection of Mr. Fred.

The following two paintings are compositions that come from other yards within a block radius of Mr. Fred and I’s homes.