Please Don't Paint Over the Graffiti

Some graffiti should be allowed to stay

Hearts Afloat

A piece of my heart is traveling to faraway lands aboard this ship.

Post office's cornerstone

After walking out of the post office this afternoon,

I noticed that the cornerstone bore this inscription.

I was shocked to learn that my grandmother is older than the building.

She is in MUCH better shape.

One Day I Was Walking Along

You can be walking along, thinking nothing in particular, just one foot in front of the other, and suddendly, BAM! Something so simple, so ordinary, takes you back, completely and entirely, to an instant long ago.

Video art installation

I was coming out of a hula class

And I passed this video art installation.

Ghostly. Otherworldly.

Totally awesome.

Sometimes I love living in NYC.

Resilient

Year after year, in spite of numerous attempts of destruction, these resilient poinsettias not only return but flourish. I look forward to their annual display and smile in remembrance of the sweet grandmotherly neighbor who planted them over 30 years ago. Many different residents have come and gone but these poinsettias always seem to return as if saying "I'm still here". For me, they are a tribute in honor of our dear sweet "Winnie".

Cabbage on the Car Hood

I haven't got a clue, have you?

Walking down my street today, I passed this and thought, "Cabbage on the car hood. Right." And walked on by.

Then my brain caught up to my eyes - "What? Did you say, 'Cabbage on the car hood?!' "

I had to turn around and walk back to check. Yep. Cabbage spread out carefully on the car hood. And the weirdest thing is that I wonder if I would have even seen it, if not for this blog commitment of stopping and noticing.

Swinger

Found this tree swing to be very tempting......

Urban Wildlife - Black Squirrel

Here in Inwood (a.k.a "Upstate Manhattan"),

we have lots of black squirrels.

This one has obviously been eating well all winter.

Cool.

Patterns

They say that our brains search for patterns. Now I can't stop seeing patterns, wherever I look.

Unpredictable

Although this photo is technically being posted on Sunday, it was intended to be my Saturday post however as unpredictable as the wind can be so was my day beginning with leaving my camera battery in the charger at home all day while I was away (thank goodness for phone cameras) and ending after midnight following a 3 hour stint in the ER with my grandson and his ear infection (and thinking if I had the Internet on my phone then I could have made this post on time but still not going to add one more thing to my phone) so today's motto for me I suppose would be better late than never and to bend with rather than against the wind.

It's White Shoulders

I keep the White Shoulders perfume bottle with the tiniest bit of oily liquid spread across the bottom. It sits for years, unnoticed, until some unexpected movement knocks it from the night stand.

I'll think to myself -"Self, it's time to toss that out."

It's more than 20 years old. White Shoulders can't possibly be popular anymore. And it must be rancid. "Throw it out, it's of no use. You don't need it anymore." But I'll need to check, to convince myself that it's useless now.

I'll unscrew the top and wave the small bottle in figure eights under my nose.

Before I can think, the smell of my mother grabs hold and she's bending towards me to say good night as she and my dad leave for their evening out. And she kisses me on the lips and I wipe away the red lipstick before I can taste it, and I say, "Mmmm, you smell good" and she says, like every time before, and every time after, "It's White Shoulders."

Coney Island amusement parks in the winter

Today I had to take a 2-hour subway ride to get to a school where I was teaching.

My 'ukulele and I went all the way out to Coney Island.

I snapped this photo of the deserted park from the train--outdoors & elevated at this point.

Romantic.

Scary.

Cool.

Ashy Trash

Seen at a rest stop in Escondido, CA

My Living Room Wall

Sometimes, to stop and notice, I don't have to go any further than my living room. How can it be that  I can pass by this, day after day, week after week - months go by - and I have forgotten, during all that time, to simply stop and notice.

Attack of the thrift shop mannequins

Upon entering a thrift shop today,

I was confronted by this angry gang of female mannequins.

I didn't stay very long.

Dusk

Tonight I walked to the grocery store.

I looked up and this is what I saw.

It kind of took my breath away.

(And I was amazed at how much the branches looked like veins.)

How To Enjoy Los Angeles

1) Adopt a Golden Retriever from the Pasadena Humane Society.
2) Climb a hill in northeast Los Angeles.
3) Sit on the trail, lean back against the tall grass on the hillside.
4) Call your dog over.
5) Listen to the hundreds of song birds.
6) Watch the pair of redtailed hawks.
7) Wonder why everyone doesn't do this.

Lending Library

In a corner of a Mexican restaurant, that my family and I often frequent, is this little area with a tall book shelf, that houses primarily mystery novels, which serves as a sort of lending library where customers (or as I like to think, friends) can trade, donate, or borrow books. Our family has celebrated many occasions there and is so comfortable in the surroundings that it feels like we are having dinner at a friend’s house. We have come to think of the owner and staff as a strange sort of extended family. This added feature makes it all the more friendly for me.

Inspiration station

A few years ago, my buddy, Wendy, made me a gift.

It used to be a jewelry box that someone had discarded.

She plucked it from the trash and transformed it.

Painting it. Covering it with inspiring & evocative words.

Building a dinosaur diorama where a drawer had once lived.

A feast for the eyes and the imagination.

It inspires me to create.

I dubbed it my "Inspiration Station."

At the Getty

 "Don't touch the art work!"

I took this picture many months ago. But it was with my old Pentax K1000 35mm film camera (still my favorite way to take pictures) and I just now had a chance to get into the photo lab to develop and print.  Love the process. Love the result.

Morning Moon

Somehow just doesn't seem right to be leaving for work while the moon is still out; beautiful morning greeting though.

My favorite new book

Don't let appearances fool you.

This ain't no ordinary notebook. No, sir.

Lynda Barry showed me how to make it MAGICAL.

Now it sings songs of days gone by.

Can't argue with that.

Hopeful symbol

Pushing through the earth, these first flowers of spring reminded me of a time when I surprisingly received an anonymous gift of daffodils as a symbol of hope. Nearly 2 years later, I remain hopeful.                                               

Coyotes in Los Angeles

On a nearby hillside I've found this coyote. I think he is lovely. I see him in my mind's eye all shiny and golden, with bright white teeth fixed in a smile. I lean in closer and closer and my heart begins to pound. That's when I remember, and I take a step back. With my heart still pounding hard, standing on a poorly maintained road on a lonely hillside, I remember that to everyone else - this is roadkill. And I sadly leave it be. But I'll check on it again, next time I walk that way, and it never looks like roadkill to me.

Lisa's pāʻū

On Monday nights, I sing and strum for a hula class in NYC.

No, really. I do.

Yes. We have hula in NYC.

And the women wear traditional hula pāʻū. Hula skirts.

I love the pattern on my friend's pāʻū.

She was wearing it tonight.

No, really. She was.

Uninspired

A typical 10 hour work day view

Amber

Masterpiece or Monstrosity?

I pass by this car several times a day. It's a masterpiece/It's a monstrosity. It's raw power/It's a total waste of raw materials. I'm drawn to it/I'm repelled by it. I stand and stare. I circle around. I peer inside. I take one last long look at that incredible grill. Then I continue on my smiling-muttering-head-shaking way, hoping that it will still be there tomorrow when I can stand in awe all over again.

Anticipation

Early spring blossoms on the trees located in the Ralph's grocery store parking lot; made grocery shopping a nice experience.

I Don't Believe in Rain

In Los Angeles, with long hot summers and autumn with the constant threat of wild fires then winters like this one with week and after week of clear blue skies, it becomes difficult to believe that there will ever be anything but sun.
The forecast is for rain on Tuesday. But today, I choose not to believe it.

Our shiny elevator control panel

I love the old elevator in our building.

The control panel is the original--in all of its vintage goodness.

I always thought it was black.

Ms. Dorothy, our neighbor, remembers it as shiny.

She convinced the new superintendent to polish it.

Wow! Night and day.

Signs in the Neighborhood (part 2)

The other day I posted about a sign in my neighborhood that I love; a sign that has been there forever.

But there is another sign in my neighborhood. It has not been there forever. It has appeared only in the last year. I do not love it.

People who grew up in this neighborhood remember childhoods of having picnics on the grass in the empty lots, or building forts on the hillside all summer long. I am so sorry that the new people in my neighborhood do not understand the joy that lingering on a grassy hillside can bring. And I am sorry that their children will never have those wonderful empty-lot memories that my children have.

Cat envy

My cat doesn't suffer from insomnia.

I'm jealous.

Happy Endings

Most days, when I leave the windowless office that I have been in for 10 hours, it is already dark and chilly so ending my day while it is still daylight is a welcomed and tranquil change.

Floccinaucinihilipilification: To Describe Something As Worthless

Lean on me

The media portrays New Yorkers as life-hardened souls.

That's not been my experience.

Why So Many Purses?

I could never quite explain why I had so many purses. I'm not a purse kind of gal. I'd rather stuff my wallet in my pocket and go. But the other day, I switched to a purse I hadn't used in over a year. At the store today, waiting for my order, I absent-mindedly checked the inside pocket. I found something that made me pause. And I became a firm believer in the importance of having many purses.

Pathway to the weekend

My steps one way down this corridor are slow and deliberate knowing what is expected at the end but my steps in retreat are light and quick anticipating all the possibilities.

Guitarra

What's The Difference Between Me and You?

Quilt landscape

Insomnia came and found me last night. (Again.)

When I finally fell asleep, I was wrapped in a quilt on the couch.

This morning, my blurry eyes thought the quilt resembled a landscape.

Mountainous, patchwork-ed terrain.

Signs in the Neighborhood

On long walks in my neighborhood, I see this sign. I look forward to it, I anticipate seeing it. I want to knock on the house door and point it out to them. I want to make sure it stays there forever.

Cat Call



Just a few of the dozens of cats that have made this abandoned Downey, CA medical facility their home.



Do not feed the cats signs are posted all around the building.

Plastic Cups at Sunset

Plastic cups in The City Of Angels. Happy Wednesday night.

Space to Create

My current work space

Lately, I've been feeling ashamed of, and stifled by, my current work space.

But then my sister walked in and said, "I wish I had a table like this!"

Instantly, with those few words, it changed from clutter to inspiration.

Start

I often begin my day with a cup of coffee.

Ok. I ALWAYS begin my day with a cup of coffee.

Its taste signals the start of a new day.

I prefer to start the day with the taste of coffee instead of the taste of toothpaste.

In Hawai'i, you'll hear people say "sipping the ʻāina." Sipping the land, the earth.

Delicious.

Draw the curtain, meet the new day and see what it brings

Everyday joy



Reminder to self - Greet each day with renewed gratitude and wonderment!