Tiny Planet (Part 2)

I've written about this app before, but I had kind of forgotten about it till today. How could that be? This is such a cool way to play with your pictures.

Just look at this cypress tree, 

shot down by the ocean in Santa Cruz.

(Click to enlarge if you like).

Cranes at sunrise,

flying over Bosque del Apache.

This was shot 

from one of the Storybookland Canal Boats 

in Disneyland.

This is the exact same shot as above.

Through the miracle of Tiny Planet,

you can set the image 

to swirl from the inside out 

or the outside in.

This is a huge version of Maleficent.

It's made completely of Legos!

It hovers above the Lego Store in Downtown Disney.

I think this shot looks better than the original!

And here's the Sleeping Beauty Castle.

Doesn't it look like it belongs in the film Up?

These last two were taken from the same image.

It was dusk, 

and we were driving through an aspen grove 

in New Mexico.

Isn't the light beautiful?

Isn't this a lovely app?  

It's available in the iTunes Store for just $.99

Various . . .

Not a lot to write, 

but we've been good about exercising.

I usually take a camera, 

so these pictures really make no sense.

They're just various shots I've taken 

in the last couple of days.

More shots of Henry Cowell

The trees are so green

this time of year.

We spend a good amount of time at our local library

It's a brand new facility,

a wonderful place to spend a few hours

Most of the lighting is solar,

beautiful design.

I love the light dividers.

The carpet, not so much.

These are my new walking shoes (duh!),

I like that they have mesh over the toes.

Cool!

I took this shot at lunch.  

The color is funky but I like the graphic.

Sometimes I think my life is too boring to blog.

Oh well.

I just try to remember,

It's Never Too Late

To Live Happily Ever After,
because

the Japanese Cultural Festival

Yesterday we decided to take in the Japanese Cultural Festival down in Santa Cruz.

I'm somewhat fascinated with all things Japanese.  Their history, the changing culture, and most of all, their enduring sense of design.  I love their costumes, their textiles and their sense of style.

This was held on the grounds of the Santa Cruz Mission, 

a perfect spot for such an event.

 There were Taiko drummers of all ages,

Elegant, graceful dancers,

And tons of textiles, 

my favorite part of the day.

Just look at this, 

vibrant, earthy and ethereal, 

all at the same time.

I'm still not sure who these purses were created for,

but I found them rather humorous.

I loved the name Origami Mommy, 

and the kimono was so beautiful.

My favorite booth.  

There will be more on this in a later blog post.

These are all handmade iPad bags.

Original and stunningly beautiful for just $20.

There were even Green Tea cupcakes.

We didn't try any.

I'm a big fan of green food, 

but these just didn't look all that appetizing.

My favorite picture of the day.

Many folks were dressed up in the Japanese style,

but this little beauty was the best.

After the Fair, 

we decided to go walking on West Cliff Drive.

Note to self: Walk before you go to an event, 

not after.

The obligatory pelican shot.

Not my best offering, 

but I always seem to want to shoot them 

(digitally, not actually).

That's all for now.

Todays Walk

Wow, we actually walked two days in a row!

Terry likes to walk near the house, I like the beach, so we've agreed to switch off.  Today, it was the beach, so we took off for Rio del Mar.

One reason I like walking there is the pelicans.  

You all know I love pelicans, 

they're just the most beautiful birds!

This next shot is way too busy, 

but I always get excited 

when I actually get a shot of a pelican 

landing or taking off.

While this guy isn't a pelican 

(duh!) 

I liked this shot.  

I'm not sure what he's eating,
but this looks MUCH better
if you click to enlarge.

On the way home, 

we stopped at the supermarket 

and this guy was just sitting in the parking lot.

And I couldn't resist just one shot 

of the light through the leaves.

If walking can be this nice, 

maybe we'll be able to keep it up!

This and That (again)

I really don't know what to call some of these posts.  

They don't have a topic, 

so I think I'll just use this and that.

I'm excited.  

This weekend I'll be going up to San Francisco 

to hear Brad Bird speak.  

This will be at the Walt Disney Family Museum.  

In case you don't know, 

Brad Bird is a whiz bang director 

who first came under my radar with the Iron Giant

You have seen the Iron Giant, right?  

If not, rent it, buy it, find a midnight showing, 

whatever, but see it.  

It remains one of my very favorite films.  

The ability of film makers 

to imbue inanimate objects with heart and soul 

is what first attracted me to animation.

The Iron Giant is the perfect example 

of animation in all it's glory.

After the Iron Giant, 

Mr. Bird directed the Incredibles for Pixar, 

then Ratatouille.  

He recently graduated to live action 

with the latest Mission Impossible film starring Tom Cruise.  

Quite the up and comer, it should be a great event.

Even though we're no longer involved with Disney, 

it seems to pop up in our lives all the time.  

Today, we went to our favorite restaurant, 

and this was on the wine list.

I try to keep myself aware of photo opportunities 

so when I saw this guy hanging out in a parking lot, 

I had to take a shot.

Again, poppies.

And that's it for today.

Memory Shots

Another set of memory shots. 

In case you're new to the blog, 

memory shots are those that, while not great shots, 

are special to me in some way.

Today I went with friends out to West Cliff.

Everyone swore there were  whales.  

We did see a few spouts, 

but I certainly wasn't fast enough to get off a shot, 

so if there were whales, 

you can't prove it by me.  

Do you think someone 

is out there in a submersible, 

spouting water every once in a while 

to fake us all out?

That thought occurred to me

There did seem to be an inordinate number of cormorants.  

There must have been at least a dozen gulps of cormorants.

Did you know that's what you call a gathering of cormorants?

While not a great shot, 

it's a reminder to me of the look of dozens of birds,

sweeping and swooping close to the waves.

I though they were quite beautiful

If you can't see them 

(they are very small in this shot), 

then click to enlarge.

This shot is my new friend, 

the baby hummingbird.

We have six feeders on the rig, 

but this little guy only comes to my window feeder.

He's quite small, and will sit for minutes at a time.

Not a great shot 

(remember I'm shooting 

through the heavily tinted windows of the Lazy Daze),

Still I wanted to capture a picture of him 

before he grows up.

And that's it for today.

Flowers, Pelicans, a Bee and Enrique!

Sometimes I think we have to make big old plans 

for a day to be special.

That said, in my heart,
I know that's not the case.

Today was a perfect example.

Our big plans were to go to the Post Office, 

then to Costco for a few essentials.

Our local Post Office does a lovely job on their flowers.

Poppies always make me smile.

Disneyland used to plant yellow and purple flowers

 at the entrance to Tomorrowland.  

It was a color scheme that I always loved 

and whenever I see it, 

it strikes a chord.

Wow, I FINALLY got a half way decent picture of a bee!

(Click to Enlarge).

 

On the way to Costco, 

I asked Terry if we could swing by West Cliff Drive, 

since there seemed to be flowers 

blooming everywhere.

He thought that was a great idea.

Once out by the ocean, 

we decided to stop by the gardens 

at the Shrine of Saint Joseph

We love these gardens, 

they're right on the ocean, 

and the array of flowers is just amazing.

We wandered around, 

smelling the sweet air and snapping pictures.

Terry took this with his phone.

Pansies make me happy,

I love their happy little faces.

Is this beautiful or what?

Another shot from Terry's phone.

Look at these colors!

More pansies, 

my colors again.

As we wandered, a gentleman came up 

and asked if we were enjoying the gardens.  

We told him we always do!  

He seemed quite pleased
and told us they were his work.

We were blown away!  

He started this endeavor only eight years ago 

and the whole thing has been done with cuttings.

As we chatted, 

our appreciation of the gardens 

grew by leaps and bounds.  

He asked if we'd like to see something special 

and of course, we said yes.  

He took us around to the front of one of the residences, 

made us climb some steps 

and not turn around till he told us to.

When we turned around, 

this was what we saw. 

(Click to Enlarge).

Can you imagine being here 

every single day?

Terry went across the street and took this shot

from the front of the residence 

(using his iPhone and AutoStitch).

And I took this picture of Enrique 

in front of some of his most beautiful flowers.

What a delight he was, 

we will certainly visit him again.

Being right on the ocean, 

I had to try for a few pelican shots.

These aren't pelicans, 

but I liked the silhouette,

Then I tried to shoot both flowers 

and the ocean behind them.

The ocean kind of got lost.

If I could live right here,

I might stay in California forever.

More not pelicans

Not a great shot, 

but he seemed to love 

soaring close to the waves.

I believe this is a baby brown.

Coming in for a landing.

And finally, a shot I'm happy with.

So this little sojourn turned into a wonderful day.  

We had glorious weather, 

saw beautiful flowers, 

made a new friend 

and got to photograph some of my favorite bird.

Like I say