Jenny Chan showed me floral water colors and stained glass at her house as inspiration for the new Jade Palace mural. During the Orange County Art Guild Tour she visited my studio for more ideas. She wanted an image in one cohesive hand. Including the public in the execution would make this a tricky balance. With the economy sinking, Jenny's main contribution was donating the wall. Most businesses won't. She also agreed to pay a token amount toward the corner that would read, "Jade Palace." For the rest I wrote grants.

Jackie Helvey, webmaster of Carrboro.com, told me about places for funding. Her suggestions proved successful. I confirmed with Volunteers for Youth that we'd be meeting after school and weekends, and I promised Jenny to use the best grade of paint we could afford. I quickly realized there needed to be a strong incentive beyond the economic, like FUN!

I thought it would be nice and folksy to have the students paint in the Chinese zodiac, and painting flowers is fun as each one has a different personality. The distant ruins, a continuing theme of mine, also serve as support for the wild-growing, pesticide-free rose vines. (Weatherspoon now offers an organic rose garden maintenance service and provided reference material.)

The mountains primarily give depth of field and remind me of deceased Scott Stewart, who was the first muralist of the wall. Over 15 years ago Scott painted his version of Shangri La. The other half can still be seen on the northeast side of the building. Patrick Herron's poem, "I am Not a Wall," has returned, too, along the top ridge of Scott's horizon. The three squares are painted in translucent acrylic. The rest of the mural, working as a frame, is in opaque acrylic, a vague "Wizard of Oz" influence with the changing from black and white to color, and in this case, from opaque to translucent.

Carrboro zoning would not allow a commercial sign to go on the mural. Chinese calligrapher Alice Zhao Jinxiu therefore volunteered to scramble up the ladder to draw some symbols, which I then painted in. The Strowd Community Rose Garden Mural had wonderful volunteer artists, Alice Griffin and Nicolette DeGroot. Others also helped out: a woman named Robin bought me breakfast; Jared Coats, VFY director, led the youth volunteers by example and got excellent results. The kids were interesting, some artistic and hard working. My last day with Volunteers for Youth included a sibling that came along because he had heard it was fun, the top compliment. I walked by the mural last week just as the string of lights above it came on. Folks gathered there after a meal to chat -- it looked like a cocktail party in a garden.

Next I'll be collaborating on a mural with Dave Otto, nature photographer, and with the public at large during the Friends of Bolin Creek festival this fall. Wildflowers and critters found in the creek corridor will be the focus. All interested in participating should e-mail me at WeinsteinArt@bellsouth.com. My new book, "Saving Magic Places," is being sent to anyone who donates $100 or more toward Friends of Bolin Creek Land Fund, P.O. Box 234, Carrboro, NC 27510. Funds raised will be used for purchase of land and conservation easements in the Bolin Creek corridor and greenway.

To see more of Weinstein's work, go to WeinsteinArt.com.