Checking Out the Scenery

These guys were totally engrossed in the scenery. Not shown is the strand of sand below that obviously contained something view-worthy. They were have quite a chuckle!

Meanwhile, another day, more studying. Test day is almost here; just one more week to get that score up!

Fossilized

A picture of a trilobite from a really cool store up in Santa Monica. Always wondered who cleans these things to painstakingly and what these guys really looked like when they were alive.

House of the Sun

This is Haleakala, house of the sun, in Maui. You can see the black and rust red cinders that line the interior as well as the cinder cones that surround the outside of the crater. If you look really close you might see the persons hiking below, although, at some 10,000 ft., the hiking turned out to be more work than I had anticipated, having spent far too long at sea level.

So Much Studying, So Little Time

Still studying for the LSAT. The score is going up every so slowly and painfully. It kind of reminds me of this climber in La Redonne, France. You just freel like you're going up a cliff and you're holding on tight. Turns out, in this case, the drop wasn't too far and it looked worse that it really was.

Wipeout or Not?

Now that's a pretty precarious angle if I say so myself but those feet are still firmly planted on the board. What do you think? Wipeout? Or not? This is one more photo from my series of photos at Sunset Beach in Hawaii.

Yet Another Day in Paradise

Here's picture of Waikiki and Diamond head from the pier/walkway at the end of Kalakaua. Nothing like a stroll in that stunning Hawaiian weather. Wish I was there right now!

Dragon Nap

A picture of a Komodo Dragon napping on a log that I ran into in Honolulu. They're really rather pretty on the other side of a moat. Looks like this one leads a pretty nice life.

Tuna by Any Other Name is Still Tuna

Hard to imagine this magnificent, fast swimming carnivore as little strips of flesh on rice isn't it? Indeed for something so majestic, for something on the top of it's food chain (or pretty close anyhow), turning into so many bits of sushi seems unreasonably undignified. I, for one, could sit and watch their sleek, smooth forms dart through the water for hours on end.

Ironically, I watched this beauty in Osaka, Japan and, if I recollect, we were so moved by it, we went out for sushi afterwards. Humph. So much for beauty versus taste eh? Oh yeah, and the mass behind the tuna is a school of fish as well, possibly mackeral.

Chinaman's Hat

When I was a kid, we always called that little island Chinaman's hat because it looked like one of those stereotypical hats you see men wearing in the rice fields. It has since been "re-named" back to some more PC, Hawaiian name. It probably had that Hawaiian name all along but it was probably harder for most people to pronounce and remember so the hat thing stuck.

It's a pretty beach if a bit rocky if you go wading. There are also lots of plovers, cattle egrets and these really cool yellow butterflies on the nearby lawn if you enjoy looking at birds and wildlife.

Do You Like To Cuttle?

Humph. What the heck is Cuttling anyhow? I looked up cuttle to see where the name cuttlefish came from and all I got was: ten-armed oval-bodied cephalopod with narrow fins as long as the body and a large calcareous internal shell. So...oh well. I guess cuttle can mean whatever you want it to! As long as it has ten arms. These two were posing at Sea World for yours truly.

Dust Cloud

Here's the view from the car window the other night. The road crew is sifting cement along the side of the highway. Rumor is they are recycling demolitioned pieces of highway to build new segments. Whatever the case, it's a nasty, dusty mess that looks like something out of one of those futuristic doom and gloom movies.

Half Mast

They were flying the palm trees at half mast the other day in memory of President Ford. It's not every day you lose a president, especially one that lives in California, in Palm Desert nonetheless. So it's only appropriate that the Palms should be flown at half mast too.

La Jolla Sunset

There was the prettiest sunset over La Jolla the other day. Too bad I had to stay inside and study. I still managed to sneak out long enough to snap a few pictures. This is the view from the back patio at the Hilton Torrey Pines. Wow...

King of the Hill

Remember when you where a little kid? Somehow, everyone always wanted to be on the highest spot on the rock. If you got the highest spot, you were the "king of the hill!" In hindsight, being king of the hill was much over-rated since it meant that all your buddies were going to pounce on you to steal your spot on the rock. Hmmm... Well, maybe it wasn't THAT BAD after all! Heheh. Happy Friday.

Some Pretty Nippy Weather

The weatherman says that there's an Alaskan/Arctic cold front camped out on North America. Whatever the case, it's pretty nippy out there compared to our normal balmy San Diego weather. It's dipped down below freezing and caused some $1B in crop damage so brace for really expensive oranges and avocados in the upcoming weeks (kind of an apple guy myself anyhow, lol). The cold has frozen the leaves off of my Banana trees and some of my ferns and I dare say the garden looks a little bedraggled. The neighborhood coyote has taken to sleeping in my fern bed (which drives the dog absolutely nuts), possibly to escape the cold. For you Northerners, I know that this really isn't all THAT COLD... but it's cold for us anyhow.

On another note, the camera is back home from the shop. I dare say I missed it. They claim they couldn't duplicate the problem though so we'll see how long it behaves. So far, so good.

I'd Rather Be Surfing...

This is one of those great big long boards that you see on Waikiki beach. Most of them are for the surf school. This one is for the lifeguards. You can see the straps on there so people can hang on to them and/or get strapped down if they can't. Nice to know those boards are at the ready.

Something to Chew On

This deer was munching on some local produce. He certainly wasn't letting a little photography get in his way so here he is. As for me, I am getting pretty burnt out studying for the LSAT so here I am! LOL. Cross your fingers for me.

Shamu or Two!

Why it's Shamu! Both of them! ..or maybe 2 of 4? Ever wonder why Sea World doesn't give their whales names? Maybe Bob or Sue? Franky? Either way, they are magnificent animals only reduced somewhat by being in a tank doing tricks for the public. I can only imagine what it must be like to come upon a pod of killer whales in person in the wild!

Grouchy Duck

Every have one of those days when you just wanted everyone to leave you alone? This duck was looking like he'd just had enough of his feathered friends and just wanted to hang out on his sunny rock.

Panther Grouper Up Close and Personal

A picture of a passing panther grouper is all spots and shades of color. He was hungrily looking for food.

What Chinese Think of Americans?

Ran into this restaurant in Qing Dao, China (where Tsing Tao beer comes from). It's a wonderful seaside resort town with some of the best local seafood. However, this restaurant at the shopping mall was attempting to lure in Westerners by putting ol' Lucky the Pirate out front and posting pictures of burgers. Hmmmm... I'll pass.

Butterfly Mania

Sometimes butterflies land in the strangest places! This little girl doesn't seem to know quite what to do with the butterfly perched on her head and she and her mom look to little brother to nudge the butterfly off of it's resting place (her head...). Little brother came to the rescue shortly afterwards.

Random Photo Day

Here's a picture of dried lavender for sale along the street in Albion, France. There are huge fields of lavender growing in the rocky soil along the hillsides. They also sell every type of lavender oil, soap, shampoo, candles and other frangrant creations.

Still Festive in the New Year

If the gulls can be festive, so can we! This little guy was posing by the Christmas wreaths that the city of Imperial Beach so graciously tied around the IB Pier. He was watching me carefully, just in case I had a handout or two but, alas, it was just another camera.

Amazing Surfers

These guys just amaze me. It's like watching someone ski down a vertical slope. They make it all look so natural and graceful like they totally own the wave. These were not small waves either, as I was at Sunset beach in the winter time. I could sit on the sand and watch for hours. Do you suppose it's too late to learn?

Watershed Event

Always wondered how those cute little planters way up on the lamp posts got watered. I figured that drip watering was too much to expect and sure enough, I caught the culprit in action watering each little planter by hand with a very long watering wand. Not a bad job I'd say. I, on the other hand, feel kind of like Darwin, having discovered the moth with the really long proboscis (for you nature lovers out there).

Go Fly a Kite!

These kids were out flying a kite while I was stuck in traffic in Honolulu. The traffic there has gotten really bad in the last couple of years but it gave me a chance to look out the window and think about what it was like to be a kid again. We all have to grow up sooner or later but just thinking about how much joy and excitement it was to do a simple thing like fly a kite makes me wish we could stay young a little longer.

Which One is Shamu?

So the trainer comes up the the little kid and says, "what do you want to see?" The kid says, "SHAMOOOOO!!!!" I always wondered if it really was a random kid or not or if they us employees kids or little acters. Either way, the act was cute.

I did wonder to myself, however, which Shamoo the kid really wanted to see. There were four whales (all called Shamoo) jumping around and maybe even a Shamoo or two to spare in a side tank! Nonetheless, Shamoo #1, #2, #3 and #4, the amazing performing killer whales, did some spectacular jumps and managed to get the front rows thoroughly soaked as planned. I think everyone had a good time. It would be fun to know if there really was an original Shamoo that started the whole show way back when Sea World was just getting started.

Do Redheads Have More Fun?

Do Redheads Have More Fun? Here's a picture of our redhead zookeeper hanging out by the Service Door with the Jaws of Death (Alligator skull). You decide. Heheh. Of course, that lady might want to move the baby carriage...

Posing with the Pelican

There was a stiff, cool breeze at Imperial Beach on Thursday. That didn't keep the bevy of fisherman home nor did it deter this friendly pelican from posing with me in hopes of a tasty handout. He eventually hopped off of the railing, oblivious to the sign he was perching on that said "no jumping or diving," nearly pouncing on and scaring the beejeebers out of a passing 10 year old that appeared to have some food. Poor kid will probably have "pelican phobia" for life (grin).

Sea Elf

Here's a little picture from Sea World at the Shamu Show. The food and souvenir vendors were wearing Shamu hats which looked a little elfish. The hats had big floppy red shamu tails on them instead of your typical white Santa puff ball.