Always

"San Francisco is 49 square miles surrounded by reality."

~Paul Kantner

Sigh. I see the Golden Gate Bridge often. It is visible, on most days, from certain streets and neighborhoods here in Berkeley. But even when I am crossing it, or in this case, standing just benethe it, I always feel as if I am seeing it for the very first time. Always. It takes my breath away!

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

The Little Gate

"The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes."

~Arthur Conan Doyle, The Hound Of The Baskervilles

I spotted this gate standing on a small hill in Marin County. I wonder what the small gate kept in, or what it was supposed to keep out. Either way I thought it was rather photogenic all on it's own. Especially with the three small birds dotting the scene. It's a tiny bit mysterious though. Hmmmm...

Any guesses?

Mood: Quizzical (Is that A Mood?) ;)

Ladies And Gentlemen... Gordon Lightfoot



~Me :)

Dock Lights

"Dock Lights" San Francisco Embarcadero. May 8th, 2013


"The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera."

~Dorothea Lange

I got off to a late start yesterday. I didn't have a chance to get out of the house until after 2:00 in the afternoon, so I knew I wouldn't be out as long as usual, which meant I should probably should have chose a specific goal or destination, but did I? Um... nope. I just grabbed the cameras, the laptop, and Alan and off we went!

Ultimately we chose to take a long drive across the Bay Bridge, then the Golden Gate bridge into Marin County. It's been a long time since I visited Fort Baker and different vistas on the Marin side, so it sounded like a fun jaunt... and it was! I was able to get some new shots of the Golden Gate and some more rustic areas around Sausalito. Plus I have a new public art image to share later this week.

All in all it was a very good day! :)

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

The Face On The Cup

"I wish you'd help me look into a more interesting problem... namely, my sanity."

~Kurt Vonnegut

I took this picture in, I believe, 2007. I was still going to once a week therapy sessons, and working really hard on eliminating the pain and sorrow that had plaqued me for what felt like forever, but in reality had been since the late 90's. A decade of pain... it can feel like forever, because it was difficult to sit on that couch every week, knowing that for that hour I couldn't ignore that pain.

There was a lot to look at in the therapist's office, but my eyes were usually drawn to his desk. There was a stuffed Sigmund Freud doll. A lot of books about love, and a stack of cups, which never seemed to go down in size. One day I happened to notice that the stack of cups, that usually sat on the side of the desk, was a little off from it's usual position. Rather than sitting on the left side of the desk the stack of cups was now on the right side, fairly close to the couch I was sitting on. The bottom cup seemed to have something written on it, but it was turned so I couldn't quite make it out.

During the session, and in an effort to change the subject we were discussing, I reached over and turned the cups around to get a better look at it. To my surprise, there was a face staring back at me! And the face, not surprisingly, seemed to understand how I was feeling!

I am not sure who drew the little face. Was it the supervising doctor? Was it a patient? I had no way of knowing, but over the next few months I made friends with the little face on the cup. It, in an odd way, made me feel less alone. Clearly the cup face had seen, and probably heard, a lot of stories. Some sadder than mine, some not as sad. The face had wisdom and experience. You can't ask for more than that in a good therapist. Right?

All I know... the face on the cup seemed to understand. :) I miss the face sometimes, but like an old friend I haven't seen for a while, I will never forget the times we spent making friends!

Mood: Happy... and WELL ADJUSTED! LOL.

~Me :)

This Year's First Rose From The Garden

"Did you hear about the rose that grew from a crack in the concrete? Proving nature's laws wrong, it learned to walk without having feet. Funny, it seems to be keeping it's dreams; it learned to breathe fresh air. Long live the rose that grew from concrete when no one else even cared."

~Tupac Shakur, The Rose That Grew From Concrete

The rose garden has gotten off to a slow start, but everything seems to be coming along nicely! The first to bloom within the garden is the Julia Child rose! It's so small and lovely. It starts out bright sunshine yellow, and as it ages gracefully, the yellow color fades, and a soft pink color forms around the edges. Amazingly beautiful. The scent is a soft lemon licorice. It's inspiring that something so fragile doesn't give up!

Mood: Quiet but Very Happy! :)

~Me :)

Waiting For Aspens

"Go spend time with the aspen trees. They'll tell you how it works. They'll tell you to look to your roots for energy. They'll tell you there's warmth below the surface."

~Kaya McLaren, How I Came To Sparkle Again

This photo is obviously from my archives, but hasn't been posted before. I hadn't posted it because it was a little blurry, but I was looking at it the other day and for whatever reason I just kind of felt warm inside when I viewed it. It's been a long time since we have visited Cisco Grove, but maybe we can remedy that! We found this stop one autumn day, while on our way to Reno, Nevada. It's about a 3 1/2 hour drive from our house to Reno, and this stop sits, tucked off from the road, a little more than half way through our journey. It's one of the prettiest places along the route to stretch your legs and take in the natural beauty... no matter what time of year, but I bet you can guess when I enjoy it the most! That's right! Autumn! The Aspen trees are nothing short of breathtaking! Alan usually has to pull me away when it's time to leave because I could literally sit all day and just watch the bright yellow leaves fall slowly silently to the earth. I think I might be longing for autumn this year more than in any other year in the last decade! I wish it would hurry up come! LOL.

Cisco Grove Aspens In Previous Years...

Irony Conveniently Located

"With every mistake, we must surely be learning."

~George Harrison

I spotted this scene about a year ago, while I was out running errands. I was at a stop light, and as I sat there, just kind of starring off into space, something about the small strip mall had my attention, but at first I wasn't quite sure what about it was that had my interest. I was kind of an odd feeling! Then Alan began to laugh... "Hey, look at that, well that's certainly convenient! Do you think the nachos leave spots all that often?" "Umm... what? I asked Alan. "Here... let me pull up a little." Said he. LOL. Okay... that was it! The signs, slightly hidden from my perspective, but in clear sight from Alan's, told the whole story, and it all unfolded in a matter of  1/2 minutes. Now just think of all the times you have had an unfortunate accident with some nachos, or any delicious finger food for that matter, now tell me, was a cleaners that close by?

Thank goodness for conveniently located cleaners... oh and Tide sticks. Personally, not being a super lucky person, I never leave home without them! :)

"Irony is fates most common figure of speech."

~Maggie Stiefvater, Linger

Mood: Silly

~Me :)