"All these things I should keep to myself
But I feel somehow strangely compelled...."

- Neil Finn, Sinner

Stimpson J. was being unusually sociable this afternoon, so I took a bunch of closeups; this was runsamuck's favorite (Stimp's always been his baby). I like this one.

Stimpy cat
Huntington Beach Ca
Canon EOS 1000D
10 June 2009

( ...and sundog... )

Buses at my kid's school
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
9 June 2009

I had a pair of khaki jeans I couldn't wear to work because I'd gotten a large permanent stain on them. They were otherwise good pants, so I decided to dye them.

Brown muck in the washing machine
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
7 June 2009

Neighbor's front walk
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
6 June 2009

( ...And the kids wanted to visit the birdhouse place again... )

Roof gone, innards going
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
5 June 2009

Rafters going
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 100D
4 June 2009

Roof gone
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
3 June 2009

Last day this house is whole. This is the same property where the owner cut the tree down on Earth Day. It was originally built in the 20's, and used to be the offices for Standard Oil - Huntington Beach being founded on the oil in the area, so there's a bit of city history behind it. I'm not sure when it was converted to a home, but it has been so for a very long time. The previous owner unfortunately had to sell it to cover his son's bout's in rehab; finally the son went to jail (again) and the parents split up. The new owner, after swearing he wasn't going to tear it down, decided he had to have another McMansion like every other new person who moves into this neighborhood -already started in the backyard - he had to wait until the tenant he was renting the house to move out to start the front.

It's not a fancy house, but it's older than two other city buildings nearby that are on County and National Historic Registers. I'm very sad about this.

Old Standard Oil House
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
2 June 2009

( Also, weird clouds... )

Darn it, I've worn a hole in my Crocs. And Costco only has green ones right now. >:p

I've got sole...
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
1 June 2009

I note that Facebook has a "I Don't Care How Comfortable They Are - You Look Like A Dumbass!" group. I was tempted to start a "If I Cared What You Think I Look Like, I Wouldn't Be Wearing Ugly Purple Shoes, But I Am Quite Comfortable, Thank You - I May Wear Them More Often Now, Just To Bug You" group, but there's already a ton of Croc fan groups...

A belated anniversary present - I think I ordered these a day or two before our anniversary, but was too cheap to pay for overnight shipping when regular delivery was free. Levenger had a sale on some really nice pens, so I got one for each of us. With initials even!

"Demonstrator" pens
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
31 May 2009

I did get runsamuck something for the actual day (a Jack Skellington t-shirt from Dismalland) and we did go out to a nice dinner sans kids. So a happy 14th was had, even with tardy gifts. How has it been that long?

My MIL is obsessed with all things Native American, and collects these figures (you know, from the little post cards that fall out women's magazines if you shake 'em) that get sent to her once month. Whatever; I used to do the same with Star Trek plates. They're all statuesque winged women in buckskin dresses, all holding dream catchers... and it seems to me, all look very Caucasian. She's got about four shelves of them.

Dreamcatcher angels
Long Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
29 May 2009

I never used to see this when I was kid. Ducks on people's lawns. Here a pair of mallard drakes enjoy someone's newly mown grass on their feet.

Mighty ducks
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
26 May 2009

This is an actual zeppelin - i.e. not a blimp, a rigid-framed airship - built up in the Bay Area, and it spent Memorial Day Weekend in Southern California. It happened to be flying up the coast as we were driving home, and I inisted runsamuck pull over on the bluff above the Dog Beach so I could snap it.

Airship Eureka
Dog Bluffs, Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
25 May 2009

( Up... )

Talked my brother into coming down and trying to go grunion watching, as it was an early 10 pm run, and the kids didn't have school the next day. We went to Seal Beach because it's one of hte few that doesn't close at 10 pm. He brought a bunch of friends with him, including new beau from Sweden, and his dog Luna, an Italian greyhound who's completely blind now. Unfortunately, we got skunked; nary a scout even showed up. I felt a little bad because one friend had come before and we hadn't seen any - he's going to believe they don't actually exist. I'm a little floored at how international Doug's friends are; the other two were from France and South America.

Seal Beach Pier and no grunion
Seal Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
24 May 2009

( +2 )

I'm not deaf; I'm ignoring you.

Stimpy really prefers our neighbor's front walk to ours. When he's not telling us it's breakfast time, he can usually be found taking a nap there.

Stimpson J. Cat
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
16 May 2009

( and several gratuitous flowers... )

Another walk with Angus, where I let him use my old camera, and we took pictures together. We walked through a small office complex a few blocks from home, across the street from the Civic Center, mainly because he wanted to see the ducks that hang out in the waterscaping there. I know we've walked through here before, but for some reason I'd never noticed this old silo (I think that's what it is), right in the middled of the complex. When my family first moved here, long before the offices were built, there was an old mansion a hundred yards away (it burned down - rather conveniently - shortly thereafter retirement apartments for senior were built), and stables not far in the other direction. Huntington Beach used to be a big farming community, and this is about all that's left of it in this neighborhood.

Silo
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
15 May 2009

( +2 )

My daughter's second grade put on a musical version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears; she'd been practicing singing along with a CD of the music for several weeks. She's right in the spot where the sun coming through the window is whiting everything out. I had taken a sick day and still felt pretty awful, so we sat in the very back row and I tried not to breathe on anyone.

2nd grade play
Huntington Beach CA
Motorola phone camera
13 May 2009

( She is... )

Fog in Fish Harbor
Terminal Island CA
Sharp VE-CG30
7 May 2009

( +1 )

Smoke from the Santa Barabara fire. We heard later that even downtown SB was very close to a mandatory evacuation.

Oddly, I thought the horizon was tilted in this photo, but when I went to straighten it, it really wasn't that far off (less than a degree).

Wildfire smoke trail
Huntington Beach CA
Sharp VE-CG30
6 May 2009

The Mary Lou Heard Memorial Garden Tour was going on this weekend - however, we only went to about 3 homes that were close to us. This home was on the tour last year, but we didn't get to it then. The backyard over looks the Talbert Marsh, so the gazebo had ID pictures of birds, and field guides and binoculars set out. There was a kid-sized honeysuckle tunnel around the sides of it as well, complete with picnic table and dishes.

Garden Tour
Huntington Beach CA
Canon EOS 1000D
3 May 2009

( moar... )