Orange You Glad You Read My Blog?

"Orange strengthens your emotional body, encouraging a general feeling of joy, well-being, and cheerfulness. Orange vibration foods are: oranges, tangerines, apricots, mangoes, peaches and carrots."
~Tae Yum Kim, The First Element: Secrets to Maximizing Your Energy

I didn't have a chance to get out and do new photography yesterday, so I tip-toed through the archives looking for something that I hadn't previously posted on Ellipsis, and as I searched for new images a general theme began to emerge... the color Orange. So, here are some of my favorite orange things! Each on never fails to make me smile, I hope you smile to.

 Enjoy!

 

About that last one. Self portraits do not make me smile, but I have to confess I did enjoy doing that one. If memory serves me, it was for one of John Scalzi's Monday Photo Shoot assignments. When I first heard the topic I considered sitting the challenge out, but somehow that just made me feel like a bit quitter! Hey, what's the definition of a challenge? Something that challenges us to rise to the occasion... right? Anyway, at the end of the day, I met the challenge, and I did it by showing what I consider my best feature, my eyes. My one eye in particular. MY CREATIVE EYE.

:)

Mood: Happy

~ Me :)

Your Monday Photo Shoot: What's On Your Porch?

"Discovery consists in seeing what everyone else has seen and thinking what no one else has thought."

-Albert Szent-Gyorgyi

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Show us something of interest on your porch. If you don't have a porch, you can substitute front steps and patios. If you've none of those things, then just find something out the window. If you don't have a window, move.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

This is one of Elvis's newest pals, Puzzles. He comes by, and very politely waits just below the back porch, for Elvis to come out and play. Elvis is a very social creature, and many, many, times I have stepped out on the porch area, to see a friend of his waiting patiently for his company. :) It makes me happy. :)

-OndineMonet
"Porch Friend"
Berkeley, California
December, 2007
Late Afternoon

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Thankful

Click on the above photo to see it in a larger, sharper version

"In this world of sin and sorrow, there is always something to be thankful for; as for me, I am thankful I am not a Republican."

-Henry Louis Mencken

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Show something you're thankful for this year. It doesn't have to be the thing you're most thankful for; even the little things count. But of course, picture whatever you'd like.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

I have a lot to be thankful for, over all I am a very happy lady, but since this is a photo shoot assignment, I thought I would keep to what makes me the creative side of me happy and thankful. Autumn. I love the natural light in autumn. The sun has a color to it, which makes me feel especially happy inside. It charges me up and makes me feel alive, but I also feel renewed and inspired on misty November mornings as well. So, there you have it, I am thankful for autumn, and all the beauty it brings. I hope that's not too hokey. :) But if it is... oh well! Tee Hee.

-OndineMonet
"Autumn Moonlight"
Berkeley, California
November 17, 2007
Late Afternoon

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Mood Lighting

"If you're photographing in color you show the color of their clothes, if you use black and white, you will show the color of their soul."

-Unknown

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Make a moody picture. By which you can use mood lighting of some sort, or possibly arty black-and-white, or whatever you need to in order to give the shot that certain moodiness. It's hard to describe, but you'll know when you see it, I'm sure.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

Yep, John was right, I did know it when I saw it. I hope it's acceptable to dwell a bit on Halloween, but you see, I love that day so much. I start photographing the minute I get up, and usually keep going well into the night, as the subjects present themselves. :) I took this photo of Mr. David Duchovny Pumpkin, 2007, in black and white, because it was an overcast day, and I was going for exactly the kind of moodiness that John is talking about. It's cool that I have a good excuse to show him off. :) Did you notice that Mr. D.D. Pumpkin's eyes are D's? Tee Hee.

-OndineMonet
"Mr. David Duchovny Pumpkin"
Berkeley, California
October 31st, 2007
Late Afternoon

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Final Flowers

"Flowers have spoken to me more than I can tell in written words. They are the hieroglyphics of angels, loved by all men and for the beauty of their character, though few can decipher even fragments of their meaning."

-Lydia M. Child

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, because winter is coming, and there aren't that many rosebuds then. With that in mind, this week's Photo Shoot.

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Last call for shots of live flowers! This is it for 2007, because after that for lots of places in the US, live flowers will be done for the year (unless, of course, they're inside your house. But never mind that).

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

Just yesterday, I was out and about in Half Moon Bay, and Golden Gate Park, enjoying the last of this year's flower gardens. The Dahlia garden in GGP is usually in bloom from the middle of July until the last of October, so it is right on schedule, but it still makes me sad to see it's demise. I was hoping we might have a warm autumn, maybe even an indian summer, but it is not to be, it is cold and rainy here this week, and there might be a few more warm days, but from what the weatherman says... the cold is definitely winning this year.

Like the dahlia's in GGP, the roses in Half Moon Bay are struggling as well. I stopped in at Pastorino's Pumpkin Patch yesterday, to have one more walk through before Halloween, and to enjoy their amazing roses. I found such vibrant colors, and the scent of the roses was simply amazing. I hated to leave. My camera got quite a workout, as did I. When I got home I was exhausted, so I took a short nap which lasted 12 hours! Aren't naps in autumn delicious? :)

-OndineMonet
"Last Call"
Golden Gate Park
San Francisco, California
Pastorino's Pumpkin Patch
Half Moon Bay
October 29, 2007
Afternoon

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Lounging

"We have to fight them daily, like fleas, those many worries about the morrow, for they snap our energies."

-Etty Hillesum

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Picture someone or something in the act of lounging about or slacking off. Naps, loitering, general loafing - it all works. Show yourself, show friends, show pets. All this shoot needs is to have them not doing much at all.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

Elvis has learned the fine art of the afternoon nap. I took this picture of him a while back, but it is a pretty accurate illustration of how he looks every afternoon, especially during autumn. He loves to crawl into the blankets on our bed, but sometimes I beat him to it, and get the bed made before he gets in. On those days, I leave plenty of throws on the bed for him to cuddle into, and I open the shade on the window so he gets the warm afternoon sun. He makes me sleepy just looking at him. I love cuddling him during a nap, he has the best belly in the world, well, second best. ;) Alan knows how to take a pretty good nap too. Tee Hee.

-OndineMonet
"Elvis and the Nap"
Berkeley, California
Autumn, 2007
Afternoon

Monday Photo Shoot: Personal Gifts

"I don't think my parents liked me. They put a live teddy bear in my crib."

-Woody Allen

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Take a picture of something nice/fun/interesting that you recently bought for yourself. That means something you bought because you said to yourself "hey, that would be nice to have," as opposed to, say "hey, this is something I have to get." So, for example, that package of tube socks that you just bought would not qualify for photo shoot - but a pair of multicolored knee-high socks with kittens on them would. It's all about the delivery, you see.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

This was a difficult Monday Photo Shoot for me. I haven't really indulged in anything recently, well, not since my last birthday in June, and I think I pretty much shared everything I have purchased since then. So, here are a couple items that I keep on my desk, which represent personal treasures to me. They were both purchased as a little something to pick up my spirits, neither qualifies as having been needed. So I hope it is ok to use these for the assignment.

The first picture is of my pal Arlo, which I named after singer, Arlo Guthrie. He is a member of my Boyd's Bears collection. I have an attachment to this fella, there is just something about him that makes me smile. :) I have a pretty big Boyd's collection, but this bear is very special. I hold him sometimes when I am feeling a little down. He helps.



This photo is of my lavender bracelet. It was really inexpensive, but it is fun and lovely. I wear it often, and feel really good when I do. :) It was only about $5.99, but it means a lot to me. I will always keep it close.

And there you have it, two examples of a recent indulgence. Just two little gifts to me, because, after all, I like me. Me is good. :) Go me!

-OndineMonet
"Arlo"
Berkeley, California
October 1, 2007
Late Evening

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Red Eye!

"There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs."

-Ansel Adams

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Show off a recent picture that is chock full of red eye. Because there's nothing more amusing than light reflecting off retinas, making folks and animals look like demon spawn! Admit it, sometimes it just gives you a giggle. For the purposes of this photo shoot, other reflective eye colors work too, so if you've got green or yellow glowing eyes (or some other color), bring 'em on.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

You know, I don't have one single red eye photo in my digital files? I have a nifty little camera that all but eliminates that problem for me, but I do get the occasional "green eye" photo, especially when photographing my young man, Elvis. He has such gorgeous green eyes, and they are quite reflective at times, mostly when he is upset, or when his allergies are acting up. The picture I used for this entry was just a bad photo all the way around. I moved just as I was taking the photo, see, a spider dropped down on me just as I snapped the photo. Funny for Elvis, not so much for me. LOL. Actually, I laughed too, and then we finished taking his Christmas portrait. It's a good thing that the three of us all have a good sense of humor, we need it. :) And despite the bad photo, isn't he a cute elf? Doesn't he just put you in the Christmas spirit?

-OndineMonet
"My Elf"
Berkeley, California
December 2006
Late Evening

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Personally Obsolete

"Look and think before opening the shutter. The heart and mind are the true lens of the camera."

-Yousuf Karsh

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Take a picture of something in your house you used to use a lot, but now hardly use at all. This could be a piece of obsolete technology, or some equipment for a hobby you no longer pursue, or just something you stopped fiddling with for no good reason at all - the basic idea is simply to highlight something that no longer has that much use for you, for whatever reason.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

I have always been a shutterbug. For as long as I can remember anyway. Among the different types of cameras I have owned are a Brownie, a pocket 110, a Polaroid One Step, and the beauty in the above photo. That was my very first serious 35mm, a Minolta Maxxum 300si. I have all kinds of interchangeable lenses and specialty items to go along with it, and it was a pretty great camera. I thought I would use that camera forever, but Alan gave me a beautiful digital camera for Christmas 2004, and I have been in love with digital photography ever sense. I like being able to see the photo I have just taken, and know if it is a good shot or not. There's nothing worse then missing a great photo moment. Oh don't get me wrong, I haven't truly given up on the non-digital camera, I do use it from time to time, but in most ways, I prefer my digital. :)

-OndineMonet
Minolta Maxxum 300si
Berkeley, California
September 19th, 2007
Late Afternoon

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Get Mugged

"Don't laugh at coffee. Some day you, too, may be old and weak."

-Unknown

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Take a picture of one or more interesting coffee mugs you might have. Because it's my experience that people have coffee mugs with interesting stories behind them. At least I do.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

Coffee mugs. Tee Hee. Why am I laughing at coffee mugs? Well, see, coffee mugs, and I, have had quite a past! I am sure you remember the story of how, at one time, I had a deathly fear of ceramic coffee mugs. LOL. True story. It was so bad, that my heart would pound, my skin would become hot, and I would feel dizzy, if I even saw someone drinking from one. Sheesh. LOL. I can laugh at it now, but at the time, it was high drama! :)

That was back in the mid 90's, and I have since been cured of that fear. Thank goodness, because I have come to know the joys of a good, solid coffee mug. I am not a coffee drinker, I much more prefer Hot Chocolate, Herbal Teas, or my very favorite hot beverage, Caramel Apple Cider, but I also enjoy having soup in a big mug, like the one in the above photo. I got this Friends, "Central Perk," mug, when the show was in it's 6th season.

It was a gift from Alan, for having successfully completed the "Unreasonable Fears And How To Overcome Them" workshop/support group. LOL. True story. Now, I consider that mug among my favorite things. Oh, if the house were on fire I probably wouldn't go running back into the burning building to retrieve it, but I would sure miss my mug. It's a friend. :)

-OndineMonet
"Got Hot Beverage?"
Berkeley, California
September 11th, 2007
Afternoon

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Expression

"A woman whose smile is open and whose expression is glad has a kind of beauty no matter what she wears."

-Anne Roiphe

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Present a picture that clearly shows a particular emotion. Happy, sad, thrilled, bummed, anything in between.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

I LOVE photographing faces. People faces, animal faces, and especially mannequin faces. Emotions are fun... sometimes. :)

"But some emotions don't make a lot of noise. It's hard to hear pride. Caring is real faint - like a heartbeat. And pure love - why, some days it's so quiet, you don't even know it's there."

-Anonymous

"Lets not forget that little emotions are the great captains of our lives, and we obey them without realizing it."

-Vincent Van Gogh

"Feelings are much like waves, we can't stop them from coming, but we can choose which ones to surf."

-Jonathan Martensson

"The walls we build around us to keep sadness out also keeps out the joy."

-Jom Rohn


-OndineMonet
"Isn't She Lovely"
Berkeley, California
Summer, 2007

Your Monday Photo Shoot: At an Angle

"While there is perhaps a province in which the photograph can tell us nothing more than what we see with our own eyes, there is another in which it proves to us how little our eyes permit us to see."

-Dorothea Lange

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Snap a picture of something at an angle. Don't tilt your camera, take a picture of something at an angle to your camera. Tilts, slopes, inclines, downgrades - they're all up for a picture.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

I had to do a little hunting in my archives, to come up with some photos of angles, that I hadn't used too often or too recent. I need to get out with the camera more often. Lately it has been just one or two days a week, but I am hoping to get a little more time in soon. :) Anyway, here are a few I found interesting, beginning with the large picture above. I don't know, I just really liked the angle of the awnings in front of this beach side restaurant, and if you look really close to the left side of the picture you will see a steep downgrade of a street which meets at that corner. The scene just caught my eye for some reason.

Roller Coaster in Santa Cruz

Street Sign Gone Wild

Devil's Slide In San Mateo County (It's steeper then it looks)

-OndineMonet
"Nifty Awning"
Santa Cruz, California
August 9, 2007
Late Afternoon

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Cemeteries

"My luck is so bad that if I bought a cemetery, people would stop dying."

-Ed Furgol

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Take a picture of, or in, a cemetery. Your local cemetery is a good, but if you've been to, say, Paris, to see Jim Morrison's grave, or took some arty shots of an ornate headstone elsewhere, something like that works too.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

I don't find this subject morbid at all. As a matter of fact, I find cemeteries fascinating. I have been photographing them for years. Whenever I get the chance I try to visit different cemeteries, around the Bay Area. I am hoping to maybe get across the bay, sometime this coming autumn, to the town of Colma, which is just outside San Francisco. 73% of the town land is made up of cemeteries, and according to Wikipedia, there are 17 in all, including one pet cemetery. Why so many cemeteries you ask? Well, see, an ordinance was passed in California, in the late 1880's that prohibited burials anywhere, other then in established and recognized city or county cemeteries.

By the time this law passed, the gold rush had begun in California, which brought an influx of new citizens to California, and the city of San Francisco. But with the new population, also came disease and the city was also affected by the Pandemic of the early 20th century. With all the cemeteries in San Francisco filled, and new area just south of the city was designated for the new cemeteries. Colma, became the "City of the Dead." Among some of the most famous buried there is Wyatt Earp. His grave can be found in the "Hills of Eternity" cemetery. I am hoping to do a more in depth posting about the town, sometime soon, so stay tuned. For now however, I have some shots from other cemeteries I have come across in my travels. Hope you find them interesting. :)

El Carmelo Cemetery, Pacific Grove, California

Golden Gate Cemetery, Presidio, San Francisco, Ca.

Silver Terrace Cemetery, Virginia City, Nevada

Mount Saint Joseph Cemetery, Hayward, California

Note: The Silver Terrace Cemetery is reputed to be haunted. You can read about it here.

-OndineMonet
El Carmelo Cemetery, Pacific Grove, California
Autumn, 2006

Your Monday Photo Shoot: A Walk Down Your Street

"I came from a real tough neighborhood. I put my hand in some cement and felt felt another hand."

-Rodney Dangerfield

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Take a shot of something unusual on the street where you live. The challenge? It can't be of something of yours. Which means, you'll have to, you know, walk down the street a bit. The definition of "unusual" I leave to you. My only suggestion is that it should be in public view, unless you can convince a neighbor to let you in their house and take photographs of the freakish stuff they have there. And if you can, well, Good on you.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)





I love getting out with the camera, but I have to admit, I felt a bit uncomfortable with showing my street specifically. I don't know, it just feels a little too private for me, because of where I live in the hills. So, I did a bit of a drive in the general neighborhood, and came up with a nice view of San Francisco, from high atop Grizzly Peak. It's a nice view, and just as pretty in the day, as it is at night. But the real photographic find, was of the poor discarded bouncy ball, with a pumpkin face painted on it. :) Now I ask, who could throw away something as adorable as that? I love pumpkins. LOL. I had an overwhelming urge to retrieve him from the dumpster, it seems like such a shame that he was given up on, especially with Halloween just around the corner. Oh well, maybe his owner will have a change of heart and go get him. Poor little fella. :( Blogfather, I hope it was ok that I did a slightly broader interpretation of the photo shoot. :)

"One man's trash, is another man's treasure.'

-Proverb

"The greatest treasures are those invisible to the eye, but found by the heart."

-Unknown


-Ondinemonet
" Poor Discarded Punky"
Berkeley, California
July, 25, 2007
Afternoon

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Working In Shadow

"Beware that you do not lost the substance by grasping at the shadow."

-Aesop

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Take a picture in which shadow plays a significant role in the composition. You may ask, how does this differ from the recent Photo Shoot involving silhouettes? Silhouettes are a very specific sort of shadow play, and for this assignment you can take a wider approach - shadows of all sorts (you can use silhouettes, of course. Just don't recycle the shot you use!). Shadows give a photo drama it might not otherwise have.

-John Scalzi ( By The Way)

In May of 2006, I took a tour of the inside of Fort Point, at the Golden Gate Bridge, and took about a million photos. There are a lot of shadows to be found in the old fort, but one of the most striking shadows, I saw that day, was the shadow cast by the bridge. I was on the very top of the fort, facing toward Marin County, and it was a gorgeous sunny day. I was thrilled to be able to get a picture of not only the beautiful Golden Gate, but also of it's shadow beneath, which made it see, like one could almost walk across the water into Marin. Sigh. I love that bridge.

In this second photo, if you look very closely, do you see the shadow of a tulip in a pot? :)


-OndineMonet
"Shadow Walk To Marin"
Fort Point
Golden Gate Bridge
May 13, 2006
Afternoon

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Geometry

"It has been said that art is a tryst, for the joy of it maker and beholder meet."

-Kojiro Tomita

Monday Photo Shoot: Picture something that shows off something geometrical. Squares, cubes, vectors, right angles, tangents, and so on; basically, any picture that shows geometrical forms and shapes in an interesting way.

-John Scalzi

I love public art. This beautiful geometric sculpture is called "Calliope" and was designed and presented to the city of Berkeley, California in 1982. The sculpture had come under some disrepair, but was restored to it's full glorious beauty in 2004. If geometry had been this interesting and appealing when I was in school, I would have paid closer attention. LOL. There are many other examples of Mr. Slusky's geometric art throughout the Bay Area. I have been wanting to take a weekend and visit as many of the pieces as possible. I love his art. To see more, visit his website here.




Helios (Bayer Corporation)
Berkeley, California


-OndineMonet
"Calliope" By Joseph Slusky
Berkeley, Marina
Berkeley, California
Spring, 2006

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Crowds

"When I'm not in my right mind, my left mind gets pretty crowded."

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Get a picture of a crowd or crowded event. Conventions, weddings, parties, cramped spaces - you know, anywhere there's lots of folks doing something.

-John Scalzi (By The Way)

Crowds you say? How about the crowds at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, playing in the warm California sun, and waiting for a concert on the beach? If you enjoy just sitting and watching a big crowd of people, this is definitely the place to go. I LOVE it there. Beach balls bouncing about, kids and their parents playing in the sand, sea birds flying around making a happy noise, a lovely view of the Walton Lighthouse, and a free concert. It just doesn't get any better then that! Ahhhh... Now that is the kind of crowd I like to get lost in. :)

-OndineMonet

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk 8/11/06
John Waite Concert

Your Monday Photo Shoot: You Look Terrible!

"Photography deals exquisitely with appearances, but nothing is what it appears to be."

-Duane Michals

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Show off a truly bad picture of yourself. One that's so bad it's not actually embarrassing, just, you know, inexplicably unrepresentative. If you would like, post a contrasting good picture, so people know what you really look like.

-John Scalzi

Bad picture you say? Got it! LOL. I have multitudes of bad pictures of me. Pictures going all the way back to 1974. I have bad pictures from every decade of my life! LOL. I hate pictures of me. I see them, and I always think... "That can't be right!" LOL. But alas... it is. LOL. I don't know. Either I have a goofy grin, or I have what Alan calls my "dirty," or I am looking away or, like with my DMV photo, I have just sneezed and my face is all wrinkled up like a peach that has died a horrible sun-drenched death in the summer noon sun. Tee Hee.

Now the terrible photo above is a special kind of terrible. As Dorothy Parker would say, "this wasn't just plain terrible, this was fancy terrible. This was fancy terrible with raisins on it." LOL. It was my 39th birthday, and I had just finished a 12 hour car ride down to Santa Barbara and back. We were almost home, but really hungry, so we decided to stop for dinner at Red Robin. Somehow, (thanks a lot Alan) the good people at Red Robin found out it was my "special" day. LOL. I got a free burger, my picture taken with the hunky Red Robin, and a pretty pink balloon. Tee Hee. Oh well, it was all in fun. But jeepers... I usually look soooo much, if not somewhat, better then that!

See...



Now this photo was taken last year, just a few days before my 44th birthday. Not too shabby I suppose. :) Well, not frightening anyway. Passable. It's nothing special... it's just me. :) Shrug.

-OndineMonet
"Always Me"
Red Robin
Pleasanton, California
June 29th, 2001
8:30 PM