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.

Day Three

Hooray, we walked again today, close to 2 miles.

For lack of anything else, I guess I'll be posting pictures from my walks (because really, I don't think you want to see pictures of us sorting and cleaning).

Today, we went into Henry Cowell State Park.  

It's close enough that we can walk to our walk!

We ran into old friends who were riding in the park.

Here's a horse "portrait".

On the way home, we passed a lovely garden.

Fortunately, it was built about four feet off the ground,

perfect for photography.

No stooping!

And that's it for tonight!

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!

Blah Blah Blah Blah

Let's see.

We've had Doctor's appointments, nothing major.

I went with a friend to learn more about her new bunny, that was pretty entertaining.

And once again, we're trying to commit to a solid eating and exercising plan (are you all sick of hearing that yet?)

I looked around online and found a program called Lose It.  It's free, and allows you to set goals, track food, nutrients and all that good stuff.  I will be going to Kaiser for a metabolic test, and that will tell me how much I need daily to maintain my current weight (not my plan) and give me a realistic idea of what my caloric intake should be for losing.  We spoke with a dietician and will continue using low carb as a basis, but hopefully by tracking all nutrients (protein, fat, sugars and fiber) it will give us a better idea of what direction we need to take.

And of course, the fly in this ointment is always exercise.

Why is that always so hard for us?  I wish I knew.  It's certainly much easier when we're on the road and there are new sites to see.

That said, we've committed to do this, so today we walked a mile or so and of course I took pictures.  I didn't have the camera, just my phone, but there's a lot to see.

The recent heat has brought out so many flowers.

This guy decided to come and say hello

For whatever reason, I like this picture.

I also liked this garden, 

maybe it's the way the light shows through the fence.

Just before we got back home, I heard a bunch of black birds raising a ruckus.  A big ruckus.  Looking up in a tree, I saw a large owl.  Unfortunately, I couldn't get the shot.  I'll be bringing my camera from now on.

And that's it for tonight.

Roller Derby Part 2

Well, we went and my feelings are mixed.

First, let me say I have the utmost respect for anyone who's brave enough to get out there and skate in public, much less in a pack, with people pushing and shoving.

But let me start at the beginning.

We got to the auditorium and were kind of surprised to see that this was going to be a flat track, rather than the banked track we were expecting.

To keep spectators off the actual skating floor, they had colorfully dressed "guards" posted all around the perimeter.  I found them almost as interesting at the skaters.

Some wore tutus

Some were in mean looking boots.

And some even wore these.

Attractive, but there was a lot of standing.

These wouldn't be my first choice,

but then, what price beauty?

Finally, the girls took the floor.

They came in all sizes, 

some large, some small.

But once they got out on the floor, 

they went for it.

Elbows weren't allowed

And if you fall, no one stops, 

they just go right over you.

The girls with the stars on their helmets are the scorers,

also known as jammers.

All of this would have been fine, but I swear, the time outs were worse than football (not that I've ever seen a football game . . . ). 

If they were ever out there for longer than 60 seconds, I'd be surprised.  Someone was always calling a time out, or a foul, or stopping the action for one reason or another.

For me, it made it pretty boring.  I didn't go to see blood and guts, but it would have been nice to see some hard core skating, and this just wasn't the venue.

Terry and I both think it would be more exciting to see roller derby on a banked track.

Now for the fun part.

I loved all the names!

As you can see here,

Hester Sinn, Adultr8

the Secret Cervix

Gloria Mayhem

Dee Fender

Heartless Harpy

and my favorite

Polly Kneesya

We had fun, but it won't be part of our regular routine.

Now, if a banked track showed up in the area, 

that might be another story.

But that's it for tonight.

 

Roller Derby!!!

Tonight's the night!

Roller Derby has come to Santa Cruz, and we're excited!

With any luck, pictures will follow.

Goodbye Ray

I am so sad.

Just last week 

I wrote about how pleased I was 

to discover the Ray Bradbury Theater.

Encompassing both old memories and new joys, 

it was like getting to meet an old friend all over again.

And now my old friend has passed away.

I know that instead of being sad, 

I should feel happy 

to have experienced the gift of his wit, 

his imagination

and his genius. 

And in time I'm sure that is just how I'll feel,

But tonight I am just sad.

Ray Bradbury

August 22, 1920-June 5, 2012

the Transverse of Venus

First off, thanks to all of you who commented, emailed and called.

I spoke with my Doctor, I go for an ultrasound tomorrow and will discuss options with her on Friday.  There is still some pain and we both believe I may have a stone stuck in my bladder, we'll see.

Anyhow, I'm feeling much better and today we took off down to Santa Cruz where the local astronomy club had set up a viewing station for the transit of Venus across the sun.

What a great afternoon, perfect weather 

for this once in a lifetime event.

There were lots of people, 

lots of telescopes 

and a general air of festivity.

Someone even made free cookies 

commemorating the event.  

How cool is that?

I didn't have a filter for my cameras, 

but I was able to get this shot 

using one of the telescopes and my iPhone. 

 Venus can be seen in the lower left.

The next shot is another one I got from the telescope. 

I didn't have a clue what I was doing, 

but I sure do like the effect.

Could I be down at the shore 

and not include at least one shot of pelicans?

On our way home, we had to stop at the market 

and I thought these flowers were just so lovely,

I had to take a picture.

And in honor of today's astronomical event, 

I'm including this picture. 

I found this in the house 

and the name and cover just tickled my funny bone. 

If Cholula Red wasn't already an established name, 

I'd name her the Galactic Derelict.

That's it for tonight.