room with a view.

my office window provides an ever-evolving display of nashville's current constructive prodigiousness. the city is growing again, perhpas as never before. the built environment is blooming in ways both large and small.

the 20th and grand condo building (center) will eventually be hidden from my view by the buckingham company's monolithic aertson midtown, a $100 million mixed use development rising swiftly and with purpose. there are two levels already. if you look closely, you can see.

it promises, at minimum, a kimpton hotel, a variety of retail shops, and condos and apartments. it is overwhelming and humbling to observe the hundreds of workers (who from this distance look like ants), plus the massive cranes and multitudes of trucks and diggers busily advancing the cause, as each does their part to make the building rise.

i'm cheered that nashville's construction and real estate markets are turning up and that with the warm weather at last upon us (and the horrific 2010 flood behind us), the city seems energetic and revived.

however, with progress comes change and sometimes loss.

in this case, it was my beloved ken's sushi (pictured above, far left), which had to be demolished. i dined there with my fellow vandy moms at least once a month, usually more, for 10 years, comparing notes on kids and parenting. we even had a baby shower there. ken made green tea cupcakes.

he always knew our orders before we walked in the door, and started making them before we'd said a word. he sent us extra ginger, and always smiled and welcomed us no matter what kind of rowdy mood we were in. i miss that place. and i miss ken.

this is the last known photo of ken's sushi. it was heartbreaking to see it come down. ken's has relocated far from campus, in donelson, and i haven't been there once. my sushi habit has pretty much been eliminated.

finally, let's look at what aerston midtown will look like in a couple of years:

quite impressive, isn't it?

i can hardly believe all that will fit on this humble corner of 21st. it will certainly be a vital part of the nashville economy, providing jobs and drawing tourists, the parents of area college students and myriad other consumers to the midtown area. for that, i'm grateful.

let's just hope it has a sushi restaurant.