An alert from Rockford artist Emily Grobe got the ball rolling. Who knew that a little message embedded in the street in downtown Rockford would open a blackhole of rabbit holes for so many, including your Under Rocks team?
The colorful license plate-sized linoleum tile is just outside a crosswalk on State Street. You might bend to scoop it up while you rush across the busy intersection before the WALK/DON’T WALK signal changes. But you can’t. It’s embedded in the blacktop, flush with the street. Thousands of cars have unwittingly sealed it in place, and thousands of cars will eventually wear its message away.
Susan Stephens
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WNIJ