bungalow heaven

while gazing at the sky, keep your eyes peeled around pasadena for signs indicating you are no longer on earth but rather in heaven... bungalow heaven that is!

this is the last image in my attempt at laurie's craftsman challenge. if you want to see more friday sky watch photos, go here.

craftsman details

just another example of the vibrant colors and the little details that make each craftsman home unique. this one does have the stonework that yesterday's post lacked, plus check out the detailing on the eaves!

all this is part of the craftsman challenge.

participants so far include...

petrea, mr. earl, and sarah jane

(post your link if you want to be added to this list!)

photo request #16: craftsman challenge

like some kind of modern internet based dual, laurie over at glimpses of south pasadena has challenged her area counterparts to post their best photo of pasadena's craftsman homes. i've struggled to capture the best, but i've got a few offerings for her. today's is almost perfect but it lacks the iconic stonework at the base of the columns. it does have several of my favorite features - vibrant paint, a massive porch overhang, and it is surrounded with greenery.

so far mr. earl has stepped up to the challenge, and petrea followed suit, but more could come soon...

like hatching a patch for instance. good one!

griffith park observatory and the hollywood sign

a recent bike ride out to mulholland drive gave me the opportunity to catch the observatory and the hollywood sign in the same picture. pretty cool, but you have to click on the image, and try and see through the los angeles smog. cough cough.

a taste of fall in january

i grabbed this fall-like image down in south pasadena (sneaking into laurie's turf!). the leaves were so bright in the sunlight - orange is a color we see all winter long in southern california as trees try to decide whether or not they can stretch their green color through the cooler months.

a cry for gaza

i attended a protest last night at the paseo shopping plaza that was being held because of the most recent outbreak of violence in gaza. meredith and i visited israel/palestine back in early 2007 and were truly impacted by what we saw there. true, the palestinian side is not without fault, but what the state of israel is doing in the name of peace is truly unimaginable.

if you want to learn more, last night's protest was organized by some people from this website. as they mention there, palestinians in the west bank and gaza strip live in an odd and oppressive limbo. they have no nation, no citizenship, and no ultimate power over their own lives.

of course we must always be reminded that conflict in this region is nothing new as this amazing website shows. however, we should never forget the persecuted, no matter how volitile their history has been - arab and jew alike.

the aftermath

thousands of people leave behind thousands of pieces of trash on pasadena's streets. isn't there a solution to this mess? a big thank you goes out to the city's clean up crew and the hard work they do in the days following the parade.

post-parade soapbox

i expect this kind of "evangelism" at morally questionable events - marti gras, spring break, the las vegas strip, etc. - but what makes these people think that rose parade participants want to be preached at, or that the feel guilty for spending family time together on a beautiful sunny day?

this kind of witness to your faith tradition seems to create more enemies than converts. the example of jesus i read about in the bible is not a guy with a catchy slogan on a street corner, but rather someone serving the poor, needy, and the outcasts of society. how are these people following that model?

although i have to give these guys credit - at least their signs don't say "jesus caused 9-11" as we saw earlier in the day - almost as objectionable as these people.



sorry about my ranting, but this stuff gets me all fired up. also, i apologize if i have offended you with today's post.

riding in style

the grand marshall for the 2009 rose parade was actress cloris leachman, famous for starring in many different roles in film, theater, and television (including the beavis and butt-head movie???).

here she rides in a flower decked horse drawn carriage - a somewhat modest means of transportation compared to the rest of the parade.

winner of the 2009 irony award

can you make out what is on the front of this float?

"celebrating the dream of home ownership for 100 years"

somewhat ironic during these economic times, donchathink?

this one is for our friends in hawaii

our old next door neighbors recently moved back to their home state of hawaii. i was able to snag three colorful images of the hawaii all-state marching band to pass on to them. hope you enjoy!

"entertaining expedition"

another float with an elephant - what does that say about me? i thought this was another fantastic float with a lot going on, and some incredible creations. it was sponsored by the rain bird corporation and you can't really tell by looking at it, but seated in the jeep are animal experts walter crawford and jack hanna.

stealth bomber in pasadena?

for something which includes stealth in its name, this isn't a very quiet jet. you can hear it coming from a mile away and it really creates quite the noise. it was pretty cool looking, and something you don't often get to see. the fly-over was supposed to happen before the parade began, but due to some technical delays it happened part way through the parade and as you can see in the picture, people turned their cameras to the sky.

kchblog has a nice video of the event.

"bollywood dreams"

one of my favorite parade floats and picture #2 from thursday's rose parade. built by the sierra madre rose float association, it isn't the most elaborate, but does have an exceptional range of colors and patterns. plus it has an elephant!

as you can see, this is a low level unobstructed view of the float - which we obtained by spending the night sleeping on the cold hard pasadena sidewalk. an experience that i'm not looking to re-live anytime soon.

i'll be posting a few more pictures of the parade over the next few days - but if you need a fix now of more shots, you can find them at various other blogs.

happy 2009!

photo #1 from the rose parade. can you see the blimp in the sky? what about the sky writing?

check out more skywatch right here.

january 2009 theme day: 2008 photo of the year

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

the votes are in, and here is the viewer's choice for my best photo of 2008. it was originally posted on september 21, although ironically it was taken in 2007 using my old camera that is no longer in existence. it is a great photo - maybe not the one i would have picked, but one i am very proud of. thanks for all your help in selecting it!

there are 151 blogs participating in today's theme.

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

stay tuned in the coming days for a review of the 2008 rose parade!

waiting patiently

tomorrow is the big day. we'll be camping out overnight to get a good spot for the parade. this is the corner of colorado and orange grove, where the crowds and tv cameras will be. i took this picture a few weeks ago during the massive set up for this event. hopefully i'll have lots of good pictures to share in the coming week.

say goodbye to 2008!

by the way - today is your last chance to vote for your favorite photo of the year in the poll on right the side of the blog. to check out the photos in contention, visit this link.

downtown skyline from union station

the california flag in front of union station stands in the foreground of downtown los angeles.

can anyone fill me in on what buildings i've captured?

framing the 210

i ride over this highway every day on my way to class or work. likewise, my wife drives on it to get to work. it's noisy and sometimes congested and a part of our lives whether we like it or not. this image ended up on my camera while i tried to take a picture of something else. i like how the fence is emphasized and the highway is simply background fuzz. what does this say about me?

red sky at night, sailor's delight

...but what if it's red and blue at the same time? and what if you aren't a sailor?

l.a. grand crew 2008

last saturday i had the pleasure of participating in the 2008 l.a. grand crew, a 20 mile holiday bike ride to purchase beer at some of the areas best shops. it was organized and hosted by the guys over at the hot knives blog (pictured above) and a full review of the ride can be found here. great time!

keep your eyes on the skies

words are not needed for this week's edition of sky watch friday.

merry christmas from pasadena!

whatever your holiday traditions include, i hope today is filled with peace, love, and joy. we're on our way to pennsylvania today to spend a few days with meredith's family, but we'll be back in time for the new year and the parade. can't wait!

all is calm, all is bright

here's to hoping your shopping is done and you can relax on this day before christmas!

also, i've put up a poll for the finalists for photo of the year. you can vote on the right side of the blog, and you can see the photos here.

trapped in suspension

do you ever have that dream where you're falling? i bet this guy has that one a lot. the civic center metro stop has several of these characters - all part of an artwork entitled "i dreamed i could fly". you can learn more about it right here. public transportation in los angeles has lots of room for improvement, but the metro train system is pretty good.

green street illuminated

the trees lining pasadena's green street are currently wrapped in christmas lights. it makes for a very mystical effect while you drive along, or in my case, ride your bike. this image doesn't quite capture the beauty the way i hoped - i may have to go out in pursuit of a better one...

huntington hospital

pasadena's massive hospital is quite an interesting piece of architecture. not only does it have a lovely palm tree lined entryway, it also has a bridge connecting the two wings. oh, and our good friend deb works there!

photo request #15: can you shoot rain falling?

a few days ago altadena hiker asked if i could photograph the rain we've been experiencing here in town. this is my attempt - you may not be able to see the rain, but you can see that the parking lot is wet, and the precipitation is visible in the mountains. this is about as close as we get to having snow on the ground in pasadena. gem city images had a great photo of the snow tipped mountains the other day as seen from neighboring monrovia, and two other photos of this phenomenon appeared over at mixed meters and glimpses of south pasadena.

i really like seeing palm trees and snow in the same image. as usual, photo requests are always welcome!

kaleidoscope of color

sometimes i can't believe the images that come off my camera. this is one of them, and today's entry in sky watch friday.

if you know what you're looking for, you can make out the top of the castle green on the horizon.

for other sky watch friday images, check this out!

disney concert hall interior

on tuesday night we went to see chanticleer perform their annual christmas concert at the disney concert hall. it really was a fantastic concert. just like last week, no photography was allowed during the concert (and in fact i'm not sure i was allowed to take this picture!). the hall was pretty fantastic in terms of the design, accoustics, and just the overall layout.

friday sky watch preview

the sky has been incredibly vibrant in pasadena lately. some cool weather has come with moisture in the air making some incredible cloud patterns and vibrant sunsets. i thought this row of palms needed their picture taken.

storm's a comin'

it is always a troubling feeling to be out on your bike and be racing nature to get back to some kind of shelter. a photo taken in the opposite direction would have shown a bright sunny sky, but these clouds at the mountains were looming. fortunately we made it back home last saturday before this one hit (ryan and meredith know how to pedal hard).

the stuffed sandwich

located just south of pasadena in san gabriel, this little unassuming building happens to be the 9th best place in the nation to go have a beer. the stuffed sandwich has decent food, but most people go there for one reason, and one reason only - the massive selection of bottled beer.

the service can be slow, and the owner is often referred to as the beer nazi, but it is worth checking it out, simply for the experience. it is unlike any beer bar or restaurant i've ever been to.

one final thing - their bottled beer is served with a paper cup. bring your own glassware or pick something from their massive glassware selection to buy and take home.

st. andrews clock tower in a new light

i've featured this tower before on the blog, but this is a new twist.

have i mentioned that the sky in pasadena these days has been incredibly vibrant around 5:00? i don't remember this about the sky last fall. sorry if you are getting sky overload, but afterall sky is in the title of this blog, so i guess it's fitting.

watkin's family hour christmas concert

oh man. every once in a while you feel like you really got to witness something truly special and unique. on thursday we went down to the largo at the coronet for the watkin's family hour's annual christmas concert. it was pretty fantastic. not only did sara and sean watkins have some of their regulars from the watkin's family hour sessions (including benmont tench), but they also had several very interesting special guests like david rawlings, jackson browne, molly jenson, glen philips, and get this - john c. reilly (who read his christmas wish list while the band played charlie brown christmas music) and minnie driver!

just an incredible night of music - and all to benefit st. jude's children's hospital here in los angeles.

the photo featured today is of the stage before it all began. photography of any kind was not allowed during the concert. such a shame!

and finally, if you haven't done so already, please vote for your favorite photo of the year. it is a close race between to walk or ride and bridge from the arroyo seco. sorry about the insane amount of links included in today's post!

sunset over pasadena

took this one from above the city, up lake avenue in altadena.

for more friday sky watch photos, click here!

it's all about framing

sorry south pasadena, here's another image of the dreaded 710 highway. another classic example of a picture i almost deleted before getting home and realizing it actually had some potential.

climbing holly street

holly street bridge is one of the many connecting points for the two banks of the arroyo seco. if you choose to bike on this road, come from the opposite direction. it's more fun to go down hill!

empty highways

you don't see this too often in los angeles county. a highway with zero cars on it. this is the 710, a little highway that never quite turned into what it was supposed to be. you can read more about that controversy on the wikipedia page for the 710.

over the rhine plays fuller seminary

touting last night's concert as "the first time we've ever played at a seminary", over the rhine took the stage to a packed house. playing a mix of old songs and new (and even a couple of original christmas tunes thrown in for good measure), they really captivated the crowd from the beginning of the set, to the end of their encore. another fantastic concert experience in what is becoming a string of really great shows for me. up next on our musical journey is the watkin's family christmas concert on thursday (providing we can get tickets!), followed by chanticleer at the disney concert hall next week.

if you haven't done so, be sure to vote for your favorite photo of the year right here! this photo is out to an early lead.

another side note - i'm happy to see that east of allen snagged a picture of the stealth bomber fly over that happened in pasadena yesterday!

too cute

i love that this little girl wants to help push the stroller.

tournament house

it has taken me a long time to post a picture of this pasadena landmark. this white mansion is the current home of the pasadena tournament of roses. it is also a former home of william wrigley (the chewing gum man). all of which can be read about in this wikipedia article.

be sure to vote for your favorite photo of the year!

sunset sky at joshua tree national park

here is another one from our trip to joshua tree national park last weekend. this is actually looking east, the opposite direction of the setting sun. i couldn't believe the color in the sky!

this is my forth attempt at sky watch friday. you can enjoy the sky from around the world by visiting the website.

best photo of 2008?

month's theme day over at city daily photo is "best photo of the year 2008". so i need your help. what was my best photo from this past year? here are the finalists as selected by you, the readers.

jan 21 - to walk or ride
april 2 - city hall in the evening
sept 21 - bridge from the arroyo seco
oct 19 - afternoon at the rose bowl

another one from joshua tree national park

i can't get over the physical beauty of this park. it was very different than sequoia national park or kings canyon, but it was still pretty fantastic. point the camera, take a picture, end up with an amazing shot. i hope you don't mind this little detour from pasadena.

again, city hall at twilight

this is the image i used for my new title banner. i decided to feature it after the compliments i received after changing the banner image. enjoy!

parrots and a crow

more from my parrot experience the other day. this tree looked beautiful in the daylight. i thought it was interesting to see this big black crow hanging out with all of the parrots. a few are almost visible if you click on this image.

december theme day: circles/spheres

this stained glass window is in a small chapel at my church. i attend pasadena mennonite church which meets in the pasadena church of the brethren building. mennonite churches are usually pretty plain buildings - not lavish or adorned with traditional religious icons. i guess our church is unique in that sense, probably because it wasn't built by our congregation.

the image includes several christian symbols - the greek letters 'alpha' and 'omega' which symbolize the beginning and the end, the crucifiction cross, the bible, a palm branch which is symbolic of peace and the coming of christ, and a star of david.

anyway, here's a plug - if you are looking for a church to worship at that places a particularily strong emphasis on peace and non-violence, social justice issues, systemic and social issues, and how essential all that is to being a follower of christ, come check us out! also we're a pretty relaxed group with lots of kids, young families, and students. dress is casual.


there are 175 blogs participating in today's theme day. you can check them out below!

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants