On The Last Full Day Of Summer

"I have an affection for those transitional seasons, the way they take the edge off the intense cold of winter, or the heat of summer."

~Whitney Otto, How To Make An American Quilt

Because of when I do my photography, and do my blog posting, I am usually one day behind things. I eventually get there... lol... so no worries. With our 5 week vacation starting in about a week, I know I will be coming and going much more than usual, so perhaps I will work on changing my posting schedule a bit. We'll see. Anyway, here is what the last day of summer, 2013, looked like for us in the Bay Area.

In my opinion, it was perfect! I love the way to earth looks, and smells, after the rain!


Padre Picnic Area
Tilden Park, Berkeley, California
September 21st, 2013


Little Farm
Tilden Park, Berkeley, California
September 21st, 2013


Lake Anza
Tilden Park, Berkeley, California
September 21st, 2013

I love working with the transitional lighting on rainy days! So pretty!

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

At 4:44 P.M. EDT Autumn Begins

"Rest your eyes well before September because with all it's colors autumn is coming to visit them!"

~Mehmet Murat ildan



Autumnal
By Ernest Dowson, The Poems And Prose Of Ernest Dowson

Pale amber sunlight falls across
The reddening October trees,
That hardly sway before a breeze
As soft as summer: summer's loss
Seems little, dear! On days like these.

Let misty autumn be our part!
The twilight of the year is sweet:
Where shadow and darkness meet
Our love, a twilight of the heart
Eludes a little time's deceit.

Are we not better and at home
In dreamful Autumn, we who deem
No harvest joy is worth a dream?
A little while and night shall come,
A little while, then let us dream.

Beyond the pearled horizons lie
Winter and night: awaiting these
We garner this poor hour of ease,
Until love turn from us and die
Beneath the drear November trees."

12 hours of light. 12 hours of darkness. And then the lovely shorter days of autumn and winter. Oh my, how I love it! Beautiful, earthly colors of leaves. Gold, Crimson, sometimes Purple, but Green is not unheard of, all falling like stars, softly to the ground. When the sun shines through the leaves on a warm autumn afternoon, I feel amazingly happy inside, like I am experiencing a soft warm hug from the very earth itself.

If it's possible to be in love with a season... I am!

Autumn officially begins at 4:44 PM EDT. Go outside and experience it. Don't take it for granted!

Mood: HAPPY

~Me :)

Round Robin Challenge: History

USS San Francisco Memorial (Damaged Bridge Wings)
Lands End (Outer Richmond)
San Francisco, California
September 4th, 2013

"That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all lessons that history has to teach."

~Aldous Huxley, Collected Essays

RRC: History!

 

For my post on the subject History, I decided to visit, or actually revisit, the USS San Francisco Memorial, which sits in the Outer Richmond district of San Francisco, near Lands End. I first visited the memorial about 10 years ago, and I did a few photos that day, but I didn't know much about how the full history or how significant the service of the USS San Francisco had been in World War II. Over the last few years I have done some reading about it, and it has stuck in my consciousness when contemplating the wars America has engaged in, particularly since 9/11. World War II, and our involvement in it, was so different than most of the wars we have been in since. No war should be the first choice of the men who make these decisions, but unfortunately some things are inevitable.

I am hoping that we are not sitting on the precipice of yet another war in the middle east, but somehow it feels like the people at the top, the ones who can decide between diplomacy and international law, over war, have their minds made up no matter what I think. I have heard my father-in-law say many times... "I went to war so my children wouldn't have to!" He is a veteran of World War II, so I can understand his ire at the fact that history, sometimes in the worst ways, just keeps repeating itself! Okay, I am done now. Here, in photographs, taken at the beginning of September of this year, is the story of the USS San Francisco, and her place in wartime history...

USS San Francisco And The Battle Of Guadalcanal

 

I decided to post the photos in black and white because it just seemed most appropriate.


Okay, now that you have seen my take on History, be sure to visit all the Round Robin participants. Just click the link at the top of this entry to be redirected to the official Round Robin blog where you will find the list of participants, and all the information you need to play along! :)

~Mood: Reflective

~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 :)

Shine On, Shine On Harvest Moon Up In The Sky

"The moon is a loyal companion. It never leaves. It's always there, watching, steadfast, knowing us in our light and dark moments, changing forever just as we do. Every day it's a different version of itself. Sometimes weak and wan, sometimes strong and full of light. The moon understands what it means to be human. Uncertain. Alone. Cratered by imperfections."

~Tahereh Mafi, Shatter Me

Today's Full Moon is called the Harvest Moon because it is the full moon which occurs closest to the Autumnal Equinox. I guess, like me, the moon just couldn't quite wait until September 22nd, which is of course the first day of autumn. I kinda like believing that... it makes me feel a little less alone in my anxiousness for autumn~ But at the same time, it's hard to not think of this moon as the last moon of summer! So, what do you think? Does summer get robbed of it's one last shining moment?

:) Isn't it funny how the man in the moon can make you feel like you are the only one he sees?

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

The Love Story Of Donny And Nina (Not Their Real Names) Part II

"It's not lack of love, but a lack of friendship that makes unhappy marriages."

~Friedrich Nietzsche

The graphic above shows where we left off with The Love Story Of Donny And Nina!

The graphic below brings us up to date...



I can't believe they got married! Just last July she was calling him a, "FUCKING ASSHOLE" and threatening to leave his "ASS." And he was willing to "CALL HER A CAB." So, was marriage really the right decision? By the same token, who am I to say what they need to do to fix their problems? That may have been just what they needed to repair whatever wasn't working. I would like to hope for the best for them, but somehow, I don't think their getting married will change much.

And that makes me kinda sad for them.

In a little less than a month, Alan and I will have been married 23 years! Alan is my best friend. My lover. My protector. My champion. He is my love! And we began our relationship as friends, then best friends, then we fell in love. There has never been any disrespect between us... ever. Mistakes yes! Disrespect? No!

Stay Tuned! I don't think we have seen, or heard, the last chapter in the "Love Story Of Donny And Nina!"

"Men marry women with the hope they will never change. Women marry men with the hope they will change. Invariably they are both disappointed."

~Albert Einstein

Mood: Reflective

~Me

Art About Town: Berkeley "Earth Song"

"Earth Song"
By, Po Shu Wang
Center at Shattuck Streets
Berkeley, California

"If you ask me what I came to do in this world, I, an artist, will answer you... I am here to live out loud."

~Emile Zola

I seem to be in a Berkeley frame of mind. :) I have posted photos of this sculpture before, but its been a while, and for whatever reason while out running errands the other day, it just caught my eye and made me smile. Can great art really be seen too much?

:)

Read more about the art and the artist here.

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

Heirloom Tomatoes Fresh From The Garden... Delicious!

"Cooking requires confident guesswork and improvisation... experimentation and substitution, dealing with failure and uncertainty in a creative way."

~Paul Theroux, Sir Vidia's Shadow: A Friendship Across Five Continents

 

YUM! There really is nothing more tasty than the fruits and vegetables from a garden you have planted and nurtured and grown yourself! This year we did a scaled down version of last years garden. Just two Heirloom tomato plants! Alan had the chance to do a lot more overtime, which was a welcomed evil, but time being what it is meant doing less planting. It's okay, we have some  ambitious plans for next spring, so all is well! And anyway, how can one feel bad, when there are beautiful, fresh tomatoes in the garden, ready to be enjoyed?!

Tonight, I am making my famous meatloaf. Right now that is it's only name. "My Famous Meatloaf." LOL. Maybe I will give it a proper name, and post the full recipe... shrug... you never know. It's probably nothing super special as meatloaf goes, but Alan loves it, and raves about it every time I make it for him. What can I say, he is easy to please. He is a nice man, who just happens to know all my flaws, but loves me anyway, and I guess it's that love for me that makes my famous meatloaf taste so good to him. I fix it for him with a lot of love, so I am glad that comes through in my cooking.

Another sign that it's almost autumn... I LOVE cooking in autumn! Come to think of it, I created this meatloaf one lovely autumn day, a few years ago. I suppose I could name it...

Carly's Autumn Meatloaf!

LOL.

Any excuse to fit autumn into the conversation.

Wink!

How does all this relate to the GORGEOUS HEIRLOOM TOMATOES? Glad you asked! You see, they are going to be cut up, tossed with some tasty, super yummy, French Feta cheese and some wonderful EVOO, and just a dash of fresh ground peppercorns served on the side of the famous meatloaf. Rustic. Simple. Delicious.

YUM!

"Maybe the cat has fallen into the stew, or the lettuce has froxen, or the cake has collapsed. Eh bien, tant pis. Usually one's cooking is better than one thinks it is. And if the food is truly vile, then the cook must simply grit her teeth and bear it with a smile, and learn from her mistakes."

~Julia Child

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

Saturdays, Football, And Leaves

Fox Sports Robot "Cleatus"
Cal Berkeley Campus
Berkeley, California
September 14th, 2013

"In football everything is complicated by the presence of the opposite team."

~Jean-Paul Sartre

 

Yesterday, Saturday, was an absolutely beautiful day in Berkeley! The sky was perfectly blue. The air was crisp and clear, and it was football day! I know... every Saturday this time of year is football day, but there is something about the first home game at Cal that makes it all so much fun! Yeah, at certain times the traffic can be a challenging, but at the same time there is a certain energy and excitement that can't be missed, and that can be really contagious! God I love it here! GO BEARS! :)

It also doesn't hurt that Berkeley is getting a big jump on autumn. Sometimes when I am out driving, I will turn a corner, and suddenly I feel like I am in the middle of autumn, rather than just on the edge of summer. Streets lined in bright greens, will suddenly burst with crimson! I could be having the worst day, and just turning down the right street brings me around to a wonderful sort of calm. So much slow that my sleeping will even improve that night. Look Ma... No Valium! LOL.

 It's hard to explain.

 

Autumn will officially be here in less than a week. Isn't that wonderful?

The Final Score: Ohio State (52) Cal Bears (34)

Mood: Peaceful

~Me :)

Butterfly Lifestyles

Monarch Butterfly
Conservatory Of Flowers
Golden Gate Park
San Francisco, California
September 4th 2013

"Alice came to a fork in the road. 'Which road do I take?' she asked. 'Where do you want to go?' responded the Cheshire Cat. 'I don't know,' Alice answered. 'Then,' said the Cat, 'it doesn't matter."

~Lewis Carroll, Alice In Wonderland

 

I learned so much about photographing butterflies from my friend Steven. I remember him telling me to "remember that Monarchs will not behave like Zebra Longwings. Some types of butterflies will sit contently sipping from a milkweed plant, while others will bounce from flower to flower." He was right. I took his advice, and I was really grateful to have it, as I said, I learned a lot from him. I miss him very much, and wish that I could still continue to share my photographs with him. I miss my friend.

 

Monarch Butterflies

Zebra Longwing

Great Southern White

Pipevine Swallowtail

Sometimes its a sad feeling to know I can't just go home and email off to him some picture of an amazing butterfly I have taken, but sometimes when I am at the Conservatory, and a butterfly is really making me work hard to take it's picture, I can almost hear Steven saying to me... "patience." And I can't help but smile a little, and just be thankful to have known Steven at all.

Mood: Quiet

~Me

Art About Town: San Francisco... "Untitled Sphere" And "Hermes And Dionysos: A Momument To Analysis"

"Untitled Sphere"
By Fritz Koenig
333 Battery St.
San Francisco, California
September 4th, 2013

"Go and make interesting mistakes, make amazing mistakes, make glorious and fantastic mistakes. Break rules. Leave the world more interesting for your being here. Make. Good. Art."

~Neil Gaiman

I have to say upfront... I LOVE these two sculptures! They have kind of become like old friends in a way! You see, when Alan and I are in the downtown area of San Francisco, and we know we are going home by way of the Bay Bridge, we usually drive past both sculptures on our way to the bridge. No matter how the day has gone, or the week for that matter, I always know that on my way home, I will get to see these two sculptures, and I will have a chance to contemplate the artist's inspiration. I love public art. I love sculpture, but not all pieces I see speak to me, but these two do! There is just something about seeing both of them that makes my day better.

Fritz Koenig, is was the artist behind the famous "Untitled Sphere" that once stood in the plaza between the World Trade Center Twin Towers in Manhattan. The sculpture was heavily damaged on that horrible day, 9/11, but it wasn't completely destroyed. Today it stands, in it's current state, damaged, but resilient, in Manhattan's Battery Park. I kinda appreciate that! Although I wish it had been returned to it's original space, and was a part of the official 9/11 Memorial at Ground Zero. One day, if I am ever lucky enough to cross Manhattan off my Bucket List, I want to see the WTC sphere for myself. It's a monument of strength, of rising from the ashes, damaged, but not broken.

Art heals.

Like an old friends, that you know so well, and fully understand with words getting in the way!


"Hermes And Dionysos: Monument To Analysis"
By Arman
411 Sansome Street
San Francisco, California
September 4th, 2013

"We dance for laughter, we dance for tears, we dance for madness, we dance for fears, we dance for hopes, we dance for screams, we are the dancers, we create the dreams."

~Albert Einstein

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

Just Me Rambling On About Autumn Again :)

"There is always music amongst the trees in the Garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it."

~Minnie Aumonier

Just Me, Rambling On About Autumn Again...

I don't know about you, but I love a cool, late summer day, with just a little breeze to it. It gives me a lot to look forward to. Like the sound of the leaves as they begin to change. Soon, in early autumn, when all the leaves are mostly green, their sound will be similar to the here and now, soft and quiet, but as autumn progresses, they begin to make a joyful noise during the increasingly breezy days of October and November. The leaves will turn red, and yellow, and orange and sometimes purple, in their own time of course. Sometimes the color seems to happen all at once, some years it feels like the autumn color will never arrive, but it does eventually, and finally, in late autumn, in December, the leaves will be more and more difficult to find, but the ones that are left, laugh out loud, as they sway on the branches and then fall softly, quietly to the ground. It's a lovely life, fully lived.

But you already knew that. Right?

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

Remembering David And Lynn Angell

"Death ends life, not a relationship."
Mitch Albom, Tuesdays With Morrie

I never had the pleasure of meeting David and Lynn Angell in this life, but I came to love them through the research I did about them, for my post honoring them as part of the 9/11 Project some years ago. On September 11th, 2001, I didn't know that they were killed when American Airlines Flight 11 hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center. I also didn't know that it was Mr. Angell that had brought me so many moments of laughter, through his work on the television shows, Cheer's, Frasier, and Wings. He made the world a better place by sharing his gift of humor with the world, and his wife Lynn through her love and charity towards children. They were unique, kind and loving people, and the world is a darker place without them. No, I never get meet them in my lifetime, but I will never forget them, they will always have a special place in my heart.

David And Lynn... I will remember you!

Love, Carly

I came across this blog post, written by a friend of the Angell. Please visit the links below to learn more about this amazing couple and their legacy.

9/11 And David And Lynn Angell
By Their Friend, Ken Levine

The Angell Foundation


"Though lovers may be lost, love shall not; And death shall have no dominion."

~Dylan Thomas

Mood: Quiet

~Me

Where Theres Smoke, Theres Probably Someone Throwing Water On A Fire

"Well, if crime fighters fight crime and fire fighters fight fire, what do freedom fighters fight? They never mention that part to us, do they?

~George Carlin

 


Yesterday, Monday, in a mad fit of "I CAN'T STAND IT ANYMORE" I put new batteries, and new SD cards in my cameras, got into my little blue car and went for a ride. The "IT" I was running from was overwhelming, mind-numbing, boredom! Oh, and the sound of my immature neighbor "Donny" throwing things about on his patio, because he was angry at himself for alienating yet another neighbor by letting his dog BARK and throw himself against his fence, 2 days in a row! At 5:45 A.M.! The neighbor in question has been a really good neighbor, is quiet and minds his own business, which is all I really require in a neighbor, so why Donny decided to be a jerk, yet again, is beyond me. Donny is simply... and we will focus on the word... simple... here. Simple.

The other thing eating at me is the media blitz that President Obama is engaging in, in his run up to that war with Syria he is aching for! TV yesterday offered very little for the weary viewer. Daytime TV is embarrassing to admit to watching. The news is just more of the same. I turned on both CNN and MSMBC and heard pretty much the same questions being asked about the Syrian situation, so off I went. I got myself a nice big order of FROYO and headed for the hills! Mt Diablo to be exact! Why Mt Diablo you ask? Well, because it was on fire! According to my handy dandy text alert messages on my phone contraption, the fire which had begun on Sunday, had doubled overnight! There was also a text message from Alan, who said he saw the fire from the San Francisco peninsula last night! Mt. Diablo is one of the higher peaks in the Bay Area, but to be able to see the flames from that far away, meant it had to be kinda spectacular!

Okay... off I went.

Here is one of the best shots I got. It really doesn't do much to show the gravity of the fire. I was closer to the western slope of Mt. Diablo. But it gives you some idea of how close I got. There is an amazing album over at the ABC/KGO website that really demonstrates the fire properly. If it is still burning later today, I might try to get a better angle on things. You never know. Today is probably going to be just as irritating as yesterday. Honestly! Sheesh! I can't do anything to force my neighbor Donny to grow his ass up and stop annoying people. And I can't do anything about President Obama and his inability to lead. So I am left hoping that Donny will just go to work tomorrow, rather than piddle around the property, acting like a jerk. As for Obama, well, later today he will be addressing the nation, hopefully to say there has been a legitimate deal brokered by Russia, to disarm Assad of his chemical weapons. Fingers Crossed.

GOD DAMN IT! Did you ever think you would see RUSSIA coming in to save the day with rationality?

Still, yesterday wasn't a total loss. I came home to the news of George Zimmerman being "detained" in regards to a domestic violence issue regarding his soon to be ex-wife Shellie, and her family. Poor George (I say sarcastically) anyone want to start a DIVORCE DEFENSE FUND? No?

I didn't think so!


Mood: Sarcastic

~Me :)

The Driveways Of San Francisco #3

"Come to me. I want to plow you like a Calgary driveway at Christmas."

~John Cleese

LOL. Okay, so there's no snow in the driveway, but still, what a way to start a week!

;)

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

3:20 In The Afternoon In Late Summer

"Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can't buy more hours. Scientists can't invent new minutes. And you can't save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you've wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow."

~Denis Waitley

I spotted this clock in downtown San Francisco the other day. It's beautiful! The time was wrong, off by exactly an hour, but then it seems no two clocks I have seen in the city ever seem to agree! LOL. It's a quirk of big cities I think. Anyway, while it might have been wrong about the time the other day, when we set the clocks back this autumn, it will be right again, and I will be right again to. My inner clock will be back to normal, the days will be darker, and there will be a pleasant chill in the air. How wonderful does that sound?

Mood: Tired

~Me