Pelicans and San Quentin Prison

Pelicans with San Quentin Prison in background. Freedom vs incarceration.

 

Clouds

This morning some very beautiful, though strange-looking, clouds met us at the Bear Valley trailhead in Point Reyes.

 

Face

What's not to love?

 

Dance

These are bugs dancing around lights at Stafford Lake in Novato, at the B-52 concert. The picture is the result of no flash, and a very unsteady hand.

 

Four Girls

Four girls at the B-52 concert at Stafford Lake in Novato.

 

Black-tailed Deer

Providence has it that my kitchen-window frequently provides wonderful photo-ops. As was the case yesterday when this beautiful Black-tailed (Mule) Deer suddenly appeared. I went to get my camera, and he was still there when I returned. For five minutes neither one of us moved a muscle, except for me clicking away! Then the beaut slowly ambled away.

 

I believe the Mule Deer are native and have been left in peace during the recent wrongful, wanton and unnecessary murder of Fallow and Axis Deer in the Point Reyes National Seashore.

 

4th of July

I am usually anxious to E-mail my very latest pictures. As a result I sometimes forget all about earlier photographs (a.k.a.masterpieces) I had planned to share. This was the case with the Bolinas 4th of July collection. I've decided to do a little catchup.

 

Here is a picture of the rope that was used in the Stinson-Bolinas tug-of-war, ready to serve. Of course, what attracted me was the little yellow ribbon! Kinda draws the eye to it.

 

Dacha

It is hard to believe that sixty-one years ago (on April 2, 1948) I arrived in Nakhodka, Soviet Union, as a pantry-boy, aboard the Danish M.S. Grete Maersk. We remained in that port, near Vladivostok, for ten days, unloading gold-mining equipment from the United States. I was equipped with a Baby Box camera.

Dacha is a Russian word for seasonal or year-round second homes often located in the exurbs of Russian cities. In some cases, they are occupied for part of the year by their owners and rented out to urban residents as summer retreats.

Which brings me to the attached picture of the Lipnosky Dacha at 12830 Sir Francis Drake, on Tomales Bay, in Inverness. I've often admired the little onion domes in passing, and finally stopped to take some pix last week.

Here's my friend Bob H, this morning at the Ponds (or should it read at the Ponds this morning?). Just think what I might be able to do with Photoshop if I were to read the instructions!

 

Arely

On August 15th I took pictures for the SCOPE at the Food & Wine Festival @ the Falkirk Cultural Center in San Rafael. And there I found Arely, preparing and offering tasty samples at the EL PALMAR RESTAURANT* stand. She allowed me to take her picture. Later I printed out a couple of 5 x 7 glossies to give to her, but didn't get to the restaurant until today, when I went there with Bob H. To my chagrin Arely doesn't work there any more and no one knows how to reach her. You may file her picture under "Famous Portraits by Hans". And for your information ~ I had a delicious Chile Relleno. The portion was so big that I brought home the tortillas!

 

* 757 Lincoln Avenue, San Rafael. (415) 456-5178

 

Whadda Scratch!

This Cormorant must have really had an itch! These gals/guys are really nimble. Picture taken a few days ago near the Village Shopping Center in Corte Madera.

 

Surprise!

Dear Everybody ~

 

As you can see, I'm thoroughly enjoying my second childhood! Nobody telling me what to do! Nothing waiting for me to do!

 

The pessimists among you may say that I ain't seen nutt'n yet, but until I do, when I do, I'm gonna have fun! So there!

 

All of which brings me to today's picture, called "Surprise". A piece of corrugated cardboard, looking like a face, lying on the ground at the Gospel Flat Farm in Bolinas. My resident hairdresser, Bob H., supplied the hair.

 

Fondly,

 

H

 

Bolinas Lagoon

A strange sight along the Bolinas Lagoon near Stinson Beach. It's been there as far back as I can remember, but I still don't know what it is, or how it got there. All I know is that it's a popular perch for boids!

 

Katydid

Dick saw it first, pointed it out to Margie, and she called my attention to it. Thank you, thank you! A California Katydid sitting on the trunk of a parked car at the College of Marin this morning. I'd never heard of Katydids, much less seen one. Examining my picture closely, I'm amazed at the insect's beauty. Its ribbed wings look exactly like a leaf, and its barbed legs are quite elegant. According to my Audubon guide, Katydids are known for their shrill songs ~ katy-DID-katy-DIDN'T. This morning's insect probably fell onto the car from a tree or bush. When we saw it, it was walking very slowly, probably because it was still quite cold at 7:00 AM.

 

Tiny Bubbles

Bob H and I went to the Bolinas Lagoon this morning hoping for a sighting of Bigfoot. What we found instead, were tiny bubbles in some puddles. Bob, my major scientific advisor, opined that they might be oxygen bubbles, produced by algae. Please be advised that these tiny bubbles have no relationship to those in the 1967 song by Don Ho. I have always detested that song. The reason I took the picture was simply because I thought the bubbles were beautiful. We never did see Bigfoot.

 

Nomad

Nomad lives in Point Arena with his Australian Kelpy. This morning, visiting Point Reyes Station, he parked the dog on top of a conveniently nearby phone booth while he went into the Bovine Bakery. The dog stood patiently waiting for his master's return. When Nomad came out, the dog jumped into his arms. Yes, I had him repeat the procedure for my picture. Note the dog's shadow on the ground. And by the way, Australian shepherd dogs, of which the Kelpy is one, are my very favorite canines.

 

Moth

This moth was sitting on the wall outside my apartment door when I came home this afternoon. I tried both my Nikons - the D-50 and the P-90. The latter won for sharpness! As usual, I was unable to identify the insect! I'm only showing a detail in order to point out the comb-like antennae. I also see the very clear image of the head of a chimpanzee., or is that just my very vivid imagination?

 

Clover

You probably already know that I spare no effort in my pursuit of improving my language skills. And this is how it came about that my friend Clover (Liu Cuiying) and I are trading Mandarin for English. As a part of this education process, Clover and I journeyed over to the Palace of the Legion of Honor. And here she is, next to some Rodins.

 

it is what it is

why do you want to know what it is?

what difference does it make?

what if you knew?

what if you don't know?

will life go on?

does it remind you of something?

do you like it?

do you hate it?

will you remember it?

it is what it is,

and i photographed it this morning.

 

Egret

Egret flying over the Ponds a few weeks ago. You've already seen this one without my tomfoolery.

 

I don't remember whether I mentioned meeting Emma at the Sausalito Art Festival on Saturday. I was immediately drawn to her. Usually I like them a little skinnier, and bright red hair (obviously not the natural color) is not my normal choice either. But there was something about Emma that attracted me. Was it her blue eyes? Or perhaps the fact that she was wearing a hotel-maid's uniform? I just can't put my finger on it. Men's preferences are enigmatic.

 

Oh, and did I mention that she was another one of Milwaukee sculptor, Marc Sijan's polyester resin creations?

 

Shanghai 1949

Memories from another life! Sixty years ago, in Shanghai, amateur-boxing was my preferred sport. I enjoyed myself, though I lost more fights than I won, and earned the reputation of being a game and scrappy boxer! I belonged to a local team that often fought teams from American and British battleships and aircraft-carriers. One of the pictures show me being congratulated by, what I believe was, an American admiral*. All this took place shortly before Chinese Communist troops occupied the city. The takeover put an end not only to the boxing-scene, but also to the visits of foreign navies.

 

*After one victorious fight I was presented with a silver cigarette-case! The evils of smoking were not yet known (or successfully ignored)!

 

Debra Maddox

Of all the pictures I took on my two visits to the Sausalito Art Festival, I like this one best. The artist is Debra Maddox of Mill Valley. Several of her paintings depicted competing athletes.

 

Hm!

I was taking pictures at the Sausalito Art Festival this morning and was struck by the work of Marc Sijan of Milwaukee. I have never seen sculptures as lifelike as Sijan's.

 

First, he works from live models, to produce a negative mold in plaster, and sculpts the interior with special tools and a magnifying glass to assure accurate detail. Then, he casts the figure in a polyester resin. To achieve realistic flesh tones, Sijan applies 25 coats of paint --- and adds varnish. Sijan uses oil paint in the final stages of the work. Google Marc Sijan if you want to see more of his work.

 

And yes, that is Sijan straightening the hair of his sculpture.

 

I will not share my opinion of Sijan's work, except to say that it is both amazing and a little disturbing! The young lady was so true to life that she reacted to me in exactly the same way all young women do.

 

I am neither a dance-, nor a music-aficionado, but that didn't stop me from catching the action on the floor of my garage this afternoon. Lighten up, those of you who are sticks in the mud, get a life! Its only a piece of string! And if you need further encouragement, click on the URL, pick a song, and click on a HEAR A SOUND CLIP.

 

http://www.latinrhythmtraders.com/html/salsa.html#anchorbam

 

Now are you happy?

 

Sleeping Lady

Despite its size (11' x 17'), San Rafael's Dennis Patton's 1988 metal sculpture of a sleeping, reclining nude in the Bon Air Shopping Center, is easily overlooked, and that's why I call it to your attention. As to Patton, who also created the Sir Francis Drake sculpture, near the Ferry Landing - while not being the greatest sculptor that ever lived, his art does add something to the landscape. The Bon Air sculpture is named 'Tamalpais' and that's why I framed it against the mountain. And in case you didn't know, or forgot, Mount Tamalpais is also known as "The Sleeping Lady" and there's a legend attached to that name. 

 

Warbler ?????????????????????????

Our usual group of suspects was sitting on the bench around the corner from the Bovine Bakery in Point Reyes Station yesterday, munching on goodies from the bakery. We were beset by more begging, hungry, Blackbirds than we had ever encountered. Twelve in all. But wait just a minute. Was number 12, demurely standing off to the side, really a Blackbird? She (for I think it was a female) just watched what was going on. I think she was a Warbler, but I am ready to be corrected. Whatever she was, I thought she was cute, even though perhaps a tad depressed (do birds get depressed?)

 

Celestial Object

It's the moon! Sorry, but you are dead wrong! Actually it's the sun! In the good old days, when we used film, an important rule was never to shoot directly into the sun. But we are digital now, and I shot this picture yesterday morning, just as the sun peered out from behind the clouds for a moment. Even though I know that the sun don't peer! I think the picture looks 3-dimensional, as if viewed through those red and green glasses some of you may still remember.