Crabs Are Born Free

Everyone went crabbing in Stonington, Connecticut and after we filled a bucket, the crabs were set free. One last summer activity before school starts. The first film is part of the 1-minute video project on Vimeo. Shoot a film for one minute—no camera movement; use natural sound—that's it. Minimalist cinema.


One Minute Crabbing in The Atlantic from Miss Lisa on Vimeo.

Crabs are set free!

Monarch Butterfly on a Zinnia

My mom-in-law has some great butterfly gardening areas in her yard. I tried so hard to get a shot of "wings open" but I guess when the butterflies sip nectar, they prefer their wings closed. They only seem to open them when they're getting ready to alight or take off. Perhaps if I had a super-expensive camera, or more patience. I do love that the head and thorax are spotty. I never noticed that before.

Trees of Southern Texas

My beloved Uncle Jacinto died recently and I just got back from San Antonio to attend his funeral service and visit with family. My Uncle was an extraordinary man and I'll miss him more than I can say. Here are some of the trees of Southern Texas: colorful, rugged, scented, givers of much-needed shade in the hot summer sun.

In front of the church in Helotes.

My Uncle and Aunt's back yard in the hills of southern Texas. I saw a road runner but he wouldn't stay to have his photo taken.

One of many birdhouses on their property.

This is a tough tree.

Sunflowers are a gift that keep on giving

Man, the bees love these sunflowers. They're at 'em all day long. Little finches are pecking at the leaves as well, leaving them ragged and limp. I imagine the squirrels will be next once the seeds start to ripen and dry. If you want to feed the wildlife, plant some sunflowers.

Ducks and Geese at Dusk

Under a minute of feeding time and quiet contemplation at the pond. Check out the duck in the foreground—she is going to town.

More blurry flowers from Heather Farm Park

Heather Farm Rose Garden

I promised myself I wouldn't be one of those photographers who takes photos of blurry flowers, but this "miniature" setting on my camera takes such pretty flower photos! It boosts the color somehow too. Even though these are all true-to-life colors, they look "glowing." The problem I have with flower photos, roses in particular, is that their "glowing" quality (which probably comes from sunlight bouncing off the petals) makes for some bad, blown-out photography with very little detail or depth. But this camera setting kind of helps fix that.

Here they are: blurry roses from the Heather Farm Park Rose Garden. I commend the volunteer gardeners who keep this patch of land so beautiful throughout the year. Flowering plants survive by attracting pollinators so pretend you're a bee or a butterfly—this must be your personal heaven.

Labyrinth and community gardens - United Methodist Church

Jackson and I did a lot of driving and getting lost while driving yesterday, so today I tried to figure out something to do nearby that was cost-free and outdoors. Turns out there were NO scheduled events in the area today that I could track down. There's usually quite a few, so I blame summertime laziness and the upcoming 4th of July holiday.

Ultimately I thought it was the perfect day to finally pay a visit to the labyrinth at Walnut Avenue United Methodist Church in Walnut Creek. It's made from brick and gravel and modeled after the one at Charles Cathedral in France. It's open to the public and the adjacent Art Whipp Community Garden is a treat. Some plots are mostly roses or other long-stem flowers. Some are all vegetables. And one was solid tomato plants, creating a tomato-plant forest. Who will be eating all those tomatoes, I wonder? They are sure to be delicious, coming from this sunny plot of land.

Jackson and I walked the labyrinth and when he made it to the center stone, he was triumphant. Then we ran all the way back through it, because that's what ten-year-olds (and their mothers) do. Some of these photos are Jackson's.

Loquats are the reason for the season

Lots of loquats in the back yard this year. I credit compost and much sun. I'm trying out a recipe for brandied loquats on my other blog, if you'd care to take a look.

Turkey on the fence

A few days ago, a turkey sat on the fence behind the house for a while. Not sure what the attraction was for him or her. I think you'll agree, the camouflage is working for this bird.

Berkeley Marina provides natural air conditioning

I've been very housebound with a bad flu that is finally on the wane. Yesterday we escaped the 90-degree heat by visiting the Berkeley Marina, where it is often windy and cool by the open San Francisco Bay. As you walk along the cove where UC Berkeley has its kayak/boat house, it's so sheltered that the temperature is noticeably higher and the wind nonexistent. The inner meteorologist in me enjoys this phenomenon very much.

This is how you know you've entered Berkeley.

Ring of Fire Eclipse 2012

Last evening's eclipse created crescent-shapes from the sunlight shining through the tree leaves (a pinhole camera effect). The light in the sky was an eerie gray. The next one like this will take place in 2023.

Amgen Tour of California Bike Race - Walnut Creek, CA 2012

These racers whooshed by so fast I could barely see them either in the camera viewfinder or in real life. Keith, who knows bikes and racing (among other things) like an encyclopedia, says this year's Amgen Tour (the biggest bike race in the nation) is not thrilling because the hardest part is near the end, so everyone's hanging back in a clump, saving their energy for the final push. The same front-runner every day also makes for slightly unexciting results. Still, they went up Mt. Diablo for the first time ever this year and that's exciting.

Here's the four frontrunners from Tuesday this week, and then the big cluster zipped by me on Oak Grove Road, turning onto Ygnacio and heading towards Clayton and the mountain. Then on to (drumroll please) Livermore—highway surrounded by dried grass, cattle and windmills. Today: Bakersfield.

These four were ahead by eight or nine minutes, yet everyone caught up within a few miles later.

 

Bike races are exciting things and I'm glad the Tour came to town.

Shell Ridge - Spring 2012

Lots of greenery but no creek—too dry this year. Plenty of ground squirrels, cows, red-winged blackbirds, finches, hawks and one Western Bluebird (rare).

Psychedelic

I'd like a pair of pants with this color combination.

Canal Trail Ride

This bike ride is all trail (with a few of cross streets) and takes about 45 minutes to do a loop. Easy! And pretty too. I stopped along the way to take some photos. I left the house at noon on our first very hot day of the season—a bad time to ride and to take photos. Without a lot of fuss, here they are.

These poppies are in great abundance along the trail, along with some purple flowers. I can't get poppies to grow in my hard, and there they are, seemingly by magic. Maybe I'll try planting seeds again next year—I'm inspired.

At this point—a glimpse of Mt. Diablo in the distance.

These homeowners painted a little mural on their shed, facing the trail behind their house.

I let these sleeping ducks lie (in the shade—it was in the 80s today).

More flowers. I think these are a type of marigold. A nice municipal golf course is up ahead.

My trusty steed.

The golf course. My son took lessons here this year. He loves golf—who knew? Beyond this is an orchard, one of very few that exist around here. There used to be hundreds of acres of orchards in Contra Costa County. My childhood home was surrounded by them (since razed and developed for housing).

Lime Ridge. There's hiking trails here.

You have to go in this spooky tunnel under freeway-like Ygnacio Valley Road. It's much better than attempting to cross the road, so thank you tunnel-providers.

You pop out, like a gopher, on the other side of the ridge.

Then you ride past a billion mustard plants, down the hill and loop back to civilization.