moon

Stopped and admired the full moon on my way home tonight.

Driving

Yep. There he is. My youngest. In the driver's seat.

After

27 years later....

Summer Vacation

Nearly 30 years ago, we went on a trip up the coast of California. It was planned as a long camping trip with a quick first stop as an overnight visit with my relatives in Petaluma.

We drove up the beautiful Pacific Coast Highway.

Just south of San Francisco, our Volkswagen camper leaked fuel into the oil. By the time we arrived at my aunt's house, our engine was ruined (which we had just recently rebuilt). We were stuck for the entire two weeks of our vacation trying with little success to get our car fixed. In the end, they were able to get it running enough for us to drive home to L.A. and our own mechanic. But they warned us to drive slowly and take it easy.

I had been so angry while waiting and wasting away our vacation.

Driving home, at 45 miles an hour, gave me a completely differently outlook. The anger blew away with the wind through the windwing window. I realized that I could notice more, enjoy the trip a lot more, just by going more slowly.

North of Santa Barbara we stopped for the night at a little, rundown campground. We sputtered to a stop and set up camp. Across the highway was the ocean and there we discovered another campground - a wonderful place called El Capitan State Beach.

We went back the next year, and the year after that. Other family members started joining us. It's now a family tradition, and the only place my guys want to go for summer. And we still go there in that same Volkswagen camper.

Station 20

We have an annual beach party every summer and for years we've set up near station 20; here we were yesterday at 6am claiming our spot for a day of fun in the sun.

Nan

Today, I was getting my classroom ready for our final show next week. There were vinyl letters on the wall - the names of students left over from the year-end show of the full-time BFA program. I was going around pulling the letters off the wall. Before I completely removed Sean Heffernan, I noticed this bit of loveliness left on the wall.

Nan was my mom's name.   I think I will leave this on the wall for a while longer.

Lei materials

While I was on Molokai recently,

I gathered lots of materials to make new leis.

These are bags of hihiwai shells, half shells of the kukui nut

and kamani nuts from the sacred grove

27/27

July 27, 1985- maybe it's lucky to be 27 years on the 27th?

muralist

Mural in the making

Lunch Time

I spent my lunch hour watching this young girl spend her lunch hour doing summersaults and handstands across the grass.

Stairs at Otis

I love these stairs. Up and down all day long in my favorite place.

statement art?

Political statement? scary.

Staples Again

Seriously? Again?

The third (or is it fourth) time that I've shared

this crowded freeway interchange with the Staples truck

during morning rush hour.

Pet rat

This man is feeding his pet rat; I hate rats but had to snap the photo when I saw this; creeped me out and I'm sure I could've gotten a better photo but I couldn't look at them again. YUK!

Sunday

July is pretty crazy for me. I work almost every day of the week, on my feet for 7 hours, commuting at least an hour each way, no air conditioning in my car. Sunday is my recooperating day, and boy do I need it, though by late Sunday afternoon I always start thinking about my classes again.

You'd think I'd be dreading the coming Monday, but instead, I've noticed that I'm looking forward to it. 

elephant mural

Came across this artist painting this mural in Downtown LA.

From My Window

From the window of my classroom I sometimes watch the kids play in the public pool. One morning, splashing and playing all by itself, was a lone seagull.

"Fannah"

When I made a quick stop at the local market to pick up a few items, I noticed parked at the curb was the station wagon of my youth; not a station wagon similar to the one we had when I was little, but THE station wagon my mom owned; I knew because it had the same license plate as when I was a kid and I remember it vividly because we called the car "Fannah" because the 3 letters on the plate were FNA; seeing the old car brought back memories of summer day trips to the natural history museum when it was my mom's turn to entertain the group of us neighborhood kids or of our little dog who would jump from the rear to the middle to the front and back again while on his way to the groomers for his regular 6 week standing appointment; amazing how this car is still in circulation after over 45 years; I doubt when my daughter is 50 years old that she'll see our old van still in circulation; the phrase "they don't make them like they used to" pops in my head and thinking that makes me feel all my 50+ years.

Lowrider

I've heard of a low rider car but never a low rider bike.

Rush Hour Buddies

I spent 10 minutes with a Staples truck in morning rush hour traffic . . . two days in a row, in the exact same spot, on the exact same freeway interchange.

sunset

I was fortunate enough to enjoy our lovely sunset this evening.

Cactus Flower

That's not going to last long, but so surprisingly lovely when a cactus flowers.

Bloom

Saw this bloom on this succulent in my yard and thought it was pretty.

Art That Fits

Driving home from an exhausting day of serious art making/teaching, this truck drives up along side me in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Art That Fits . . . what? I amused myself all the way home with the fill in the blank.

oil cloth

Found this tablecloth while cleaning the garage; perfect fit for my outdoor cafe table; great timing too!

My Classroom (Part 2)

weeds

Noticed the weeds were taller than me-time for some serious weeding...

Sasquatch Was Here

Sasquatch was here?

Greasers

Beauty School Drop Out- entry in costume contest for Grease at the Hollywood Bowl.

My Classroom

catch all

My bedroom has become a catch all and there is a growing mountain of stuff blocking my closet; how did a blender box end up here?

squirrel

This little rascal caused quite a stir with one of our dogs but he didn't get frazzled; held on to his treat and even posed proudly for the camera.

Old Linen/New Fashion

After taking the Fashion on the Fly class (using only tablecloths, old drapes, scissors and staplers to create fabulous new garments), I now look at my linen closet in a whole new way. Where's my stapler . . . ?

tour bus

Didn't know TMZ had their own tour bus.

summertime fun

A good and fun way to beat the heat.

street performer

I admire those who put their talent out there.

Cucumber Aliens

Yesterday we watched the movie "Signs."

Today I cut a cucumber from my garden and sliced up some cucumber aliens.

Wrinkled

"I can make a peach pit with my chin" - look - and I rub softly at the wrinkled knob. "And I can do THIS with my tongue." Reid imitates the clover leaf tongue trick and we gaze at our images in the big mirror across from the dining room table. "Listen" he yells, and we quiet down expectantly, young and old, my dad with his comb poised in mid stroke, Pam pulling her long hair into a loose pony tail, Heather with a spoon hanging, balanced, from the end of her perfect nose. "Listen and he opens his mouth wide and knocks a tune out by rapping his knuckles on the top of his head.  Laughter, squeals, oohs and ahhs.  "Look what I can do" we all seem to yell at once and we all in turn, or more often together and overlapping, show off our silly talents as our dad watches and our mother giggles and we believe the look in his eyes and the smile on her face. We believe them, that we are the most wonderful, the most talented. The next day I will show the group of people at school my wonderful new-found talents, and somehow they won't care; it won't be fun.  But even when I realize I'm not the most wonderful, I still know I am the most lucky.

(This was an 8 minute, Lynda Barryesque writing from the word prompt "wrinkled.")

Promo

Promo for Iris Cirque du Soleil- found the film reels cool.

Banner

Banner outside a home welcoming home their son.

Still the 4th?

I'm not sure that I actually enjoy 4th of July anymore. We spent at least as long cleaning up as we did watching the sparks fly. And please, would someone tell my neighborhood that the holiday is over - I'm tired of being woken up every night by the loud booom of illegal fireworks.

seeds

My sweet peas have finished their blooming season but left behind many seeds in anticipation of next seasons blooms.

Mockingbirds are My Favorite

The other day, I was wasting some time, casually flipping through a book "Attracting Birds to Your Backyard." The page that caught my eye was "What to do if you find a baby bird." The book told me not to worry that a mother bird might reject a nest that smells like human - it's just an old wive's tale. If it's obviously too young to be out the nest, it said, pick that bird up and put it back in.

Wouldn't you know it, today I found a baby bird in my back yard. The purplish kind, with no real feathers, tightly shut eyes, and wide open mouth. I thought it was dead, laying in the sun under our avocado tree. I looked closer and it was breathing. What to do?! What to do?! Then I remembered the common-sense advice: "Look around for a nest." And there it was, about 10 feet up in the avocado tree. I picked up that little bird, climbed a ladder, and tucked it back into the nest next to his sleeping baby brother.

I couldn't even tell what kind of bird it was. But when I came back with my camera, I saw a grown-up mockingbird with a bright red berry in its mouth swoop into the tree, then heard two little peeping voices.

Computer Blues

We went out of town to the in-laws for a few days to celebrate the 4th. Seven different households all hanging out under one roof - a million kids running around. I brought my camera and I've got pictures to share. The kids are getting along wonderfully, but I can't make the various electronics play nice together. I'll be back posting on Friday!

Trifle

My patriotic contribution

jewelry pouch

I have one of those pouches that hangs over the back of a door and has tons of pockets to hold jewelry which I rarely utilize but today as I passed it I noticed these poodles watching me and I thought maybe they wondered if today would be the day I'd take them out.

Good Impression

I like to remind myself that it isn't always about perfection.

Construction or Sculpture?

It's all about context.

Usually, when I would see something like this on the street, I would hardly notice and just think that some city construction project must be getting ready to happen.  But this was outside of Otis, an art school, and instead I found myself thinking about the cool minimalist sculpture that must be in the works. Construction or sculpture?

custom guitars

For $9.95, you can choose your favorite color and get it customized ith your name....

Painting the roses red

Saw this city truck applying some type of greenish color to the grass and all I could think of was "painting the roses red" from Alice in Wonderland.

I went to church today. Yep, you heard right - church. The sermon was on compassion. Ok, that's sounds like a typical morning at church. But this sermon was given by a ukulele strumming, blues harmonica playing Buddhist monk. So good.