Johnie and Bob

This is Johnie; for over 40 years he stood prominently atop "Johnie's Broiler" a restaurant located in Downey, California. Johnie's had been featured in several movies and TV shows because of it's authentic 50's style; sadly, in 2007, Johnie's Broiler was illegally demolished, however, Johnie himself refused to go and has remained and although he now stands at the back of the parking lot of the newly built Bob's Big Boy, he has no hard feelings; that's just the kind of cool cat Johnie is.

Bones Everywhere I Go

I'm not sure why, but it seems like everywhere I go I find small bones with teeth. I don't even have to be wandering in the vacant hills. Sometimes, I'm just walking down my street, I look down, and I find them in the corner of someone's front yard, near the driveway. A little freaky, to say the least. But I'm not complaining.

Refrigerator Collage

Massive wall of canned goods

this always causes me to stop and stare

(an outdoor wall at a latino grocery store in washington heights, nyc)

Poppies

Theses poppies are adding to the spring joy in my yard.

Spiked Wheels

What the?! This is a tow truck.  What do they do? Go around popping tires to drum up some towing business?

Greetings

As I descend from the freeway off ramp, from my morning commute, I am, on most mornings, greeted by the sun on the horizon....makes pulling in the parking lot a little easier.

Scary Statue

I was walking in Queens today

when I came upon this stone statue

(actually, there were 2 of them--one on each "pillar" at the house)

AND IT TOTALLY FREAKED ME OUT.

It made me wonder if the owners liked the image

Or if it was some kind of a memorial

A boy-angel and his puppy...

The Judge-a-Mood Meter

I can pretty accurately judge my mood just by looking at this small bookcase in my bedroom.

A.) Lousy Mood:  Does it look like a pile of dusty crap that should have been thrown out long ago?
Or
B.) Good Mood:  Does is look like a glorious pile of memories and inspiration?

Guard Rail

After living on the same street for over 45 years, the city thought it now necessary for some reason to put up this guard rail; in all that time, I have never known of a car to go over the cliff; the only incident I remember was back in the 60's or early 70's when one of the neighbor kids who was walking along the edge fell and broke his leg but other than that it's been incident free. I wonder how long it will take before graffiti art covers it.

Roadwork Still Life

This scene/moment in time

reminded me of a time I was in Jeanie's classroom at Otis

A tableau of shapes, angles, curves, colors, textures.

Millard Sheets Library

This, of course, is a library, which, or course, makes me happy. But this library is filled with books about art. Art, art, art. Rows upon rows, stacks upon stacks of books all about art. This library, of course, makes me swoon.

What If...

I jumped on the Mega band wagon; I know the odds are crazy but half the fun of it is playing the "what if" game - What Would You Do?

Bountiful baskets

Today I walked by a supermarket in Washington Heights

and their outdoor display of nature's bounty was beautiful.

I got hungry looking at the baskets and all of the produce spilling out of 'em.

Vibrant colors, smells, textures.

Absent-minded

It wasn't until 6:21 am this morning when I went to get my purse to leave for work and noticed the strap to my camera hanging out of the side pocket did I realize that I had completely forgot to post my daily contribution to the blog; ugh! Well, this was a learning experience for me on how this simple blog has had an effect upon my life. Through this blog process, I have already become more observant well I shouldn't say more, I should say have become observant because really I have been told that I am not an observant person; I tend to be focused more on thoughts on the "what's next" then my own surroundings but through this blog, I have learned to stop and notice the here and now. And...through this as well, I have learned to forgive myself. So, instead of berating myself about how forgetful I am, I forgave myself and made a choice to accept that these things happen and it's ok; I look back at yesterday and think after working 10 hours in front of a computer screen, driving home in freeway traffic, cooking dinner for my family, bathing my 22 month old grandson and washing the dirty dinner dishes that I was in the "now" and that forgetting to post will happen maybe from time to time and that it is ok; so I move forward guilt free.

Street Chess at Union Square

These street chess games have always fascinated me.

One person sets up the game and then waits for someone to join them.

Maybe someone they've met before. Maybe a complete stranger.

United by their love of the game.

Cool.

Angel in the Fence

I've always known that I'm not the only one who visits the Trash Heap. But I figured it was mostly just kids, kicking things around, spilling out the contents of paint cans, breaking glass and mirrors. But today I was surprised to find that someone else sees this stuff as special.

When I first saw this cement head, it was in the dirt, amongst the broken bricks and scraps of wood. I wanted it, but decided to leave it be.

 Now I'm so glad I left it.  It has taken its place - an angel watching over my Trash Heap.

Hawaiian-style Pineapple Bread

'onolicious.

broke 'da mouth kine good.

true story.

All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go

I have boxes and boxes of old and broken jewelry. Last November, I met a nice woman who made new pieces out of old. I offered her a look-see through my boxes, to take whatever she thought she could use, and she agreed to make me something from my favorite broken brooch. I love the necklace she made for me, but the problem is that I've fallen out of the habit of wearing any jewelry at all. I was afraid that I would put down this nice piece and then forget about it, never remembering to put it on. So I hung it from my bedside lamp. I thought that it would be easy to spot, and easy to remove from the lamp and place around my neck. But then I noticed how great the lamp wore it, and I added the bow tie. I do notice it. It makes me smile every day. I smile remembering the new friend who made it for me, and smile seeing how happy my lamp looks wearing it.

Bird on a wire

Enjoying the dry weather before the storm.

No More Cold Noses

When the weather is cold I often mention (ok, I complain to anyone within earshot) that my nose gets cold. But I mean really cold. So cold that it gives me a headache. Everyone thinks it's pretty funny and many people have offered ideas. The most popular idea was sticking a hard boiled egg on my nose, yolk removed. I've considered trying the egg idea; I'm that miserable when my nose is freezing.

Now, there are many reasons why I think my sister is super. And today she made me think so again. Today she gave me a present:

My sister knitted a nose warmer for me!

Garden Godzilla

This guy happily posed while taking a sun bath on our stairs; actually, it just might be a female since this larger lizard kept trying to impress her by doing push ups on the stair and then would get real close and try to get frisky or so it seemed but she wasn't about to be bothered during her sun bathing except to pose for her close-up. 

typewriter #1

Garden Blooms

First signs of spring; oh, how happy these make me.

3 very different men standing on a corner in NYC's Greenwich Village

Seriously.

This is a REAL photo taken this afternoon of

3 very different men

(although maybe they're actually quite similar)

standing on street corner in NYC's Greenwich Village.

It's like

the Village People for the new millennium.

The Jolly Jug

I love old signs.

But this one makes me a little crazy. Besides being weather-beaten, broken and faded, nothing in it matches. Nothing makes sense.

Who is that goofy guy in the green bow tie with yellow polka dots. Is he Jolly Jug? And why is he wearing a crown? Because of the "honored sandwiches?" But a crown makes him majestic, not honored. Maybe he should have a gavel, like a judge (Your Honor Jolly Jug, sir).  My son says I over-think these things. Hmmm . . . perhaps he is right this time. But for sure, no over-thinking about it, this sign does not make me yearn for sandwiches from the Jolly Jug. Ugh.

But on the other hand, just imagine how fabulous this sign could be if someone restored it. Suddenly, all the inconsistencies would just make it that much more charming.

A Perfect Place

I had grand plans to go to the museum today. But instead these cool-looking cement blocks called out to me. So I spent the day in the yard with grand plans of trying to find the perfect place them. Never did find the perfect spot, but I did pull a million weeds, plant some sunflowers, rake up some leaves, trim some chili pepper plants, and generally enjoy a sunny day.

Emergency Precautions

Comforting to know that it's here at work just in case...

Superette in Washington Heights

Freeway clown

The end of the 710 freeway brings all sorts of "solicitors"; Orange vendors, peanut peddlers, flower sellers, homeless vets, real estate agents (yes, I've been handed a business card from a real estate agent) but today was my first freeway clown; did a little juggle for me; asked how his photo came out and was happy for my monetary thank you. Who knew the freeway could be so entertaining.

Just A Goofy Lemon

Just a goofy-looking lemon

Flavor of the month

I visited a coffee shop in Queens today.

The flavor of the month is Raspberry Mocha.

I prefer plain, unflavored coffee.

Straight up--no sugar, no milk.

Strong enough to rip the enamel off of my teeth.

True story.

Self expression

As I was coming home from my Tuesday evening pool night, around 8pm, I noticed this hand made sign posted expressing one neighbors frustration; that's one way to make your point.

What To Do With a Blue Rocking Horse?

I wish I could figure out a good enough excuse to drag this home from the trash heap!

Cubicle Guardian 2

A while back I posted  a photo of my cubicle guardian and all of a sudden he has a little companion; a trainee perhaps; where he came from, I have no idea; maybe my guardian is cloning himself.

The Trash Heap Returns

The trash heap makes its slow return.

I think if I recreated this in a gallery I could call it art.

Face in the stone

Today I walking thru

Manhattanʻs Upper West Side

And I was delighted to see all of the cool

architectural details

that adorn the buildings and staircases.

American gothic, for sure!

Dancing water

Part of the World of Color show at Disney's California Adventure; the colored water fascinates me.

Andy Warhol monument

Today we had such a great sky here in NYC

and I passed the newly-famous

Andy Warhol monument in Union Square.

The sky, the buildings, the monument

I had to snap a quick photo to share.

A Missed Post

I missed my daily post yesterday. I came home tired from teaching all day. And the cold rainy day just begged me to hibernate. I fell asleep early. Woke up before midnight. "You could still get that post in," I told myself then fell right back to sleep. This morning I woke up with a big smile on my face, even before I looked out and saw this beautiful day.

Later, I'm hoping to see the ocean out there. In the early afternoon the sun hits the water just right and if I'm lucky I can see a thin strip of gold on the horizon.

Open Up!

We hardly ever have days this gorgeous in L.A.  This house with big wide windows and wonderful views - Hey! Open up your curtains! Open up your shades! It's beautiful out here!

Abandoned lot

An abandoned lot

not too far from my apartment

Across the Harlem River--

where the boundary between Manhattan and the Bronx

becomes blurry.

Vet sculpture

As many times as I drive past this emergency pet center, I just noticed this beautiful wood sculpture; I thought it must be new but was told it wasn't, just new to me.

Keyboard

I had to buy a keyboard today

I'm learning a new piece of music--

a throwback to another time in my life

It was very nostalgic

And very SCARY

My fingers remembered how to play a little...

That was the scariest part of all.

Taffy

The local ice cream shop is gearing up for Easter with a barrel full of assorted salt water taffy; although I enjoy the beautiful variety of colors, the only taffy I actually like to eat is the black licorice flavored ones; on that piece of information, my husband commented "who likes black licorice? which brought on a conversation down memory lane about how my beloved grandpa Julio loved black licorice and even kept a box of black licorice flavored cough drops in a drawer in the kitchen and how I would sneak in there and open the box and take in the scent of my grandpa's cough drops. Forgot about those cough drops and my grandpa's love of black licorice until I saw that taffy; I had a very special grandpa.

What to do with old records and toys

When I was first getting to know my now good friend Wendy, she invited me over one day to help her with a project. We made dozens and dozens of these wacky decorations for her upcoming house concert. We painted flowers and designs on old 45's and LPs, then glued on goofy toys we bought from the thrift shop. We hung them from the ceiling, suspended upside down, all over her house. It was super fun and started the foundation of a super friendship. I still have about a dozen of them hanging from the ceiling and wall over my work space.

Parking lot view

Makes me happy to come out from work and still have some daylight.

Self portrait in a mirror

A self portrait taken in a mirror

A photo of my reflection

(Like a portal into an alternate universe.)

Manhattan, Upper West Side

Snails and Shells and Puppy Dog Tails

Today Donkey and I went for a walk in the amazing Debs Park. It is one of our best kept secrets here in northeast Los Angeles. At the park, walk up the road to the pond. Stand in the shade and check out the view, then keep on going. The paved road follows the crest of the hills northward and soon leaves the graffiti behind while many small hiking trails wind their way along through the trees and brush giving spectacular views of the San Gabriel Mountains, the Arroyo Seco, and downtown Los Angeles. Its my new favorite place.

After another fabulous walk, we left the park and I desperately needed something cold to drink. I found a little burger joint and went in to get a soda. Donkey waited outside. I hurriedly reached into my pocket for some crumpled dollar bills. And I laughed at myself, feeling like a little kid just coming in from playing all day on the hillside.