A Perspective... Revisited

"The fact that we live at the bottom of a deep gravity well, on the surface of a gas covered planet going around a nuclear fireball 90 million miles away and think this to be normal is obviously some indication of how skewed our perspective tends to be."

~Douglas Adams

The Salmon Of Doubt: Hitchhiking The Galaxy One Last Time

I first posted the photo above, in early September, 2014. This garbage can is in my favorite park in the East Bay, and I pass it often while out photographing flowers and autumn leaves. Well, at least I did at the time, I have since moved, but I still visit there when I can. Cull Canyon Park, in Castro Valley, always inspires me, and its one of the nicest parks in the East Bay to just stop for a moment and have lunch or catch one's breath. 

Anyway, while photographing some pre-season autumn leaves, I looked at the lid of the can, and for whatever reason I saw a crow in the paint erosion. Alan saw a bear. And I do see a bear, but the crow is my first thought. I guess it's one of those perspective things! But, like I said, I originally posted the photo a couple years ago, and since then I haven't thought about it much. Why would I? Right? Then one day last month, while I was doing the exact same action as the first time I noticed it, I saw two more creatures I hadn't noticed before. This time, at the base of the can. A cat and a mouse. Do you see them? Or is it just me?

 

 

Now I know I tend to see shapes, and sometimes faces in things, I especially like to find that kind of stuff in nature! I have built a whole series around it. But I don't often stop and consider shapes quite like this. It has to have occurred through erosion, because who would take the time to create animal shapes on a random trash can? Not too many people I suppose, and yet I can't see anything but those three creatures. 

A crow bending over eating.

A cat with a big thick tail.

And a little mouse just to the right side of the cat.

How about you? What do you see?

 What's Your Perspective?

"Most misunderstandings in the world could be avoided if people would simply take the time to ask, 'What else could this mean?'" 

~Shannon L. Adler

 Leaf Of The Day

December 2nd 2016

 

 

Days In Heaven

"In Heaven it is always autumn"

~John Donne

Heaven definitely has autumn! Always autumn? Of that I am not so sure. I would think we would have all the seasons, if we had one. But maybe we get the best parts of all the seasons, you know? Summers would never be so hot that you couldn't think straight. Autumn would be all the colors that ever were! Colors that you had never seen before, all hanging off the branches of trees until time to give you a soft, warm, spider free blanket, on a cool, but not cold autumn day. 

Winter would have snowflakes that look soft, and cold on the autumn leaves, but they never get muddy and dirty, but they shine with diamond iridescence under the full autumn moon, so even nighttime can play along. Then spring comes, and behind each warm day are blossoms and leaves with just a hint of autumn remaining so that it all comes together at once.

 No day ever gets too hot, nor too cold, just beautiful with color everywhere! And there are of course cats. All the cats I have loved, running through the leaves, chasing butterflies for the purpose of play, just a game of catch and release. And there are vivid memories so that even in Heaven we can remember when we have had a perfect autumn day! 

Leaf Of The Day

November 20th 2016

Mood: Quiet

~Me :) 

Alone On A Beach

"Outside of a dog, a book is man"s best friend.

Inside of a dog it's too dark to read."

~Groucho Marx

The Essential Groucho:

 Writings For By And About Groucho Marx

As I get ready to begin some autumn blogging, I have been tip-toeing through my archives to see what inspired me in years past. All the usual suspects abound... leaves, sunsets, butterflies. The colors of autumn in the natural world and in decorations. What I don't have a lot of are the creatures you happen upon. The ones you can't really plan for. I have so many memories of the odd dog or cat doing something super interesting, but that I had failed to photograph, because it was more fun to just stop and watch them, then it was to get the dream shot. It's always a difficult choice for the avid shutterbug. Do I grab my camera and document this extremely interesting moment to share with my followers and friends, or do I put the camera down and just have the quiet moment all to myself?

As you can see by the technical errors in the photo above I had a moment of indecision. It's not perfect, but fortunately it is interesting, if not a little whimsical. Here I was, standing on a cliff in Montara, watching this beautiful pup running around in the sand, barking and enjoying his life. I stopped to watch him, then he stopped to watch me! I wonder what his picture of me would have looked like, had he had a camera and been able to use it! Would there be an interesting light behind me? Would he have zoomed in closer? Zoomed out? Would he have struggled with the rule of thirds? We will never know, but he and I made eye contact, and starred at each other for about 2 solid minutes. I wish I knew what he was thinking. The next time I have an opportunity like this one, I think I will also take a photo directly behind me so I can see the full picture, from all perspectives.

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

The Point

"The truth is, I can choose to view tough times as growing times, I can choose to see aging as seasoning and I can choose to focus on whatever good there is to be found in living. 

I choose. After all, it's my point of view."

~Steve Goodier

I have passed this sign in San Francisco, which sits at the entrance to Fort Point, at the Golden Gate Bridge, and I never noticed how kinda silly it is. FORT POINT... has a little sign with a little arrow that... POINTS to FORT POINT.

Get my point?

Crissy Field

San Francisco, California

April 11th 2015

Mood: Happy

Me :)

No Shirts. No Shoes. No Whining.

"Never tell your problems to anyone... 

20% don't care and the other 80% are glad you have them."

~Lou Holtz

Friday was a good day. If you kept me in your thoughts yesterday... thank you. I got your good vibrations. Friday came with some light at the end of the tunnel. We will find out next week for sure but next week, fingers crossed, this case may be settled, and it will be onto the future from there. At least for this weekend, no whining, no crying, no anger, just packing up my things, and moving forward on.

Mood: I'm Good!

~Me :)

What Do You See?

                                                               

"In all affairs it's a healthy thing now and then to hang a 

   question mark on the things you have long taken for granted."

~Bertrand Russell

So, Alan and I went out with the cameras yesterday, and I spotted this trash can with some of the paint worn off. I immediately saw a crow in the missing paint pattern, while Alan saw a wolf. The discussion of what the pattern was, came down to what each one eats. Crows are omnivores, while wolves are carnivores. So, what do the small spots that are scratched off beneath the animal shape seem to be? I see fish, how about you? And if you see fish also, could it be that the shape is actually neither crow nor wolf, but rather bear?

    So tell me ... what do you see?

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

Love Bugs...

"Actually, it's nature itself that creates the most beautiful pictures, I'm only choosing the perspective."

~Katja Michael

When I saw these two love bugs on a wall the other day, I couldn't help but photograph them. Once again it was a reminder of my friend Steven. He used to occasionally post what he would call... "Bug Porn." Or sometimes, "Frog Porn." It just depended on what love sick creatures he came across. LOL. It was always funny, because Steven was such a gentleman. He was kind, and courteous of others, so he didn't say much flirty, although he would be flirtatious on occasion, but it was all in good fun. I miss his talent with the camera. I miss talking to him about stupid stuff, or laughing at one of his odd photos of two frogs mating. I don't know why, but sometimes it just comes up and hits me in the face, that he is gone. I don't know... maybe I am thinking about him because his favorite color was green, and that was the topic of yesterday's Round Robin Challenge, and I know he would have come up with something amazing!

Shrug.

I miss my friend. 

But I think of him often.

So somehow it feels like he is still here. 

I guess he still is in a way.

Shrug.

Mood: Quiet

~Me :)

New Rex Hotel In Black And White

"Above all, life for a photographer cannot be a matter of indifference."

~Robert Frank

Last week, while driving through San Francisco, I spotted this old hotel sign at the top of a building, on Broadway, where the Crowbar bar used to be. I haven't been able to find out much information about the old hotel, or the building in general. In fact, the only bit of information to be found has more to do with the Crowbar. It seems that in it's day it was quite the dive bar, but oddly enough, it was seems it was very loved. And missed! I like living in the East Bay, but you can't beat San Francisco for all kinds of reasons, the different and varied neighborhood nostalgia being one of them.

If you are as avid a shutterbug as I am, you already know there is a story to be found no matter where you go, even if there is no story to be told. That's what I love most about having my camera by my side, I get to step outside my usual thoughts and interests. Every single day has the potential to open my eyes in a new way!

Mood: Intrigued

~Me :)

Smile, You Woke Up Today!

"When you love something, you want to do it all the time, even if no one is paying you for it. At least that's how I felt about drawing."

~Meg Cabot, All-American Girl

I love photography! I do! And that's why I find inspiration everywhere! It's pretty fair to say that I have taken at least a photo a day for the last ten years, well, with a few exceptions, mostly brought on by pain from my Fibromyalgia and then during the lull I experienced prior to being diagnosed with an under active thyroid. God, it sounds like excuses, but let me tell you, I missed being able to feel creative! It was eerily reminiscent of the years of Anhedonia. YIKES! Pathetic much? LOL. No, just human I guess. Life has a funny way of throwing you curves, I count myself lucky that I have conditions that can be treated! I got reminded about how lucky I was yesterday, while on my way to the Bay Bridge. A homeless man was standing in the middle of the street. He had a simple sign in his hands which read... "Smile, You Woke Up Today!" A simple reminder? Or a good swift kick in the backside?

I guess that is a very personal, and individual, revelation to be had and decided upon.

"Smile, You Woke Up Today." PASS IT ON!

Mood: Reflective

~Me :)