saga!

whenever i see this vintage motel, it reminds me of watching commercials like this one...

the hottest of knives

if you are a foodie blogger in los angeles, you probably already know about these guys, but in case you don't, hurry on over to their blog to read about their culinary adventures in the world of vegetarian/vegan cuisine and beer. fantastic reading.

this photo is from their presentation at the recent craft beer festival.

sky watch friday at jpl

i snapped this one off during our recent visit to nasa's jet propulsion laboratory.

more sky watch friday can be found right here.

eateries handbook

many of you have noticed the link on the right side of this blog for "eateries" - pasadena's newest publication. what you may not have realized is that petrea and i are featured! go pick up a copy - apparently there are thousands being distributed around town - and check out our page. and then go here to read the full article.

we are heading back to virginia today for a quick trip to the town of our alma mater. my cousin is getting married on saturday, so we get to experience lots of family, friends, and fun! should be a great time.

photo request #23: train stations

a bird waits for the metro at the china town station along the gold line.

thanks to laurie over at the wonderful glimpses of south pasadena blog for her suggestion that i head out and snap some pictures of our picturesque metro stations.

canadians at a ballgame

adam and i had a great time chearing for our blue jays, but sadly they lost last thursday night by a score of 6-1. we really should have gone the night before when they won 13-1 - oh well! for those baseball fans who have been living under a rock, our blue jays currently sit in first place in the american league with a record of 22-12! GO JAYS GO!

oh, and they start a series tonight against the hated evil empire.

welcome to bike week!

hey there pasadena. this week is pasadena's annual bike week. it includes a wide variety of events and bike rides, and city residents are encouraged to get out and ride their bicycles - to work, around town, or just around the block.

go have fun! and for details about this week, check out the website.

oh, and this picture was taken during our recent epic bike ride.

craft beer fest los angeles 2009

yesterday i mentioned that i'd be heading to the los angeles craft beer festival - and guess what - i went and it turned out to be quite an event. i missed buying tickets during the online presale, and thus was forced to wait in an incredibly long line (for over 3 hours) just to gain entry.

once i got it, i recieved my complimentary festival glass and got to work, tasting beer from a wide variety of california brewers. unfortunately quite a bit of the free advertized food was already gone by the time i got in, but i got to sample most of the beer that i had been excited to try. it was an interesting event, and i ended up running in to quite a few people i had met during this event.


in hindsight, it would have been much better if i had purchased tickets in advance. it was the first time the organizers had ever done something like this and there were certainly a few hiccups in the way that it was run (huge lines outside and inside, and they ran out of most food rather quickly), however with the overwhelming response i'm sure it will become an annual event.

update: a good review of the festival was posted in the la times.

update 2: a fantastic rundown of different perspectives over at beergeek.la

nasa's jet propulsion laboratory

last sunday we went to j.p.l. for their annual open house. from the observation deck we got to see the new mars rover which is currently under construction in several different stages in this laboratory. apparently it is scheduled to be launched in 2012.

there were huge lines for every building and exhibit because of the fact that it was free, but we still had a great time. still kind of weird to me that this is right here in pasadena.


speaking of local events, our public information officer has a great list of upcoming free events. and today, i'll be attending this.

st. andrews sky

more sky watch friday right here.

best little cat house

i'm not a cat person, and yet this place caught my eye. i'm really curious about what a 'feline exclusive resort and spa' is... can anyone help?

classical guitar + farmers market = perfect saturday morning

those of you familiar with the saturday farmers market at the high school will recognize this guy. he's there every week. i really should have asked for his name so that i could give him a proper shout out on this blog.

i love that this particular farmers market has live musicians. it makes the atmosphere even more wonderful than it already is. i thought i had already posted a photo of this gentleman, but i can't find it... can anyone else remember if i've posted his picture before?

clink!

raising a glass at this weekend's dinner at mi piace. we were celebrating a tim's recent successful audition - those of you on the east coast should keep your eyes out for a universal studios commercial with him starring as a british rocker.

congrats tim!

mi piace and the exchange building

on saturday night we enjoyed a lovely dinner out with friends. while we normally go for italian food at pasadena's "the kitchen", it was nice to take a step up. mi piace is always packed, seemingly no matter what time of day, and now we know why. the food was really very tasty, and the atmosphere was lovely.

mountain range cloud cover

check out the image in front of me on my way to the farmers market yesterday. it was just begging to be photographed. we don't get much cloud cover in pasadena, so seeing these fluffy clouds resting on top of the san gabriel mountains was pretty spectacular.

21

21 is a significant number - perfect score in blackjack, legal drinking age in the usa, etc, etc. but in pasadena it has two additional connotations - both found on de lacey street. is it simply coincidental that forever 21 and 21 choices are right next to each other?

sky watch friday is happening on saturday this week.

may theme day: shadows

a little twisting and turning, and voila! today's theme day photo. for those who are new to this, i devote the first of each month to city daily photo's theme day. city daily photo is a fantastic website where you can see one photo a day from hundreds of cities across the globe.

in fact, there are hundreds of others displaying their shadowy photos today.

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

bird pick

i don't know much about tea, but i am impressed with bird pick. we stumbled upon this little shop after our first experience with brix 42 (you can just make it out just down the road to the right in the picture). bird pick has an incredible variety of loose leaf teas from around the globe. they have a tea bar ready to serve you a hot cup of your favorite, or you can buy in bulk to take home.

brix 42

somehow a new brewpub opened in old town pasadena without me hearing about it. come on blog readers! you gotta help me out! so last night meredith and i went down to check it out. i'm happy to report good things. sure, brix 42 occupies a venue that has been home to failed restaurant after failed restaurant, but maybe this place can break that trend.


so here is my review:

they have 5 well made beers, and you can order them separately ($4 each, or $3 during happy hour, or $2!! on thursdays) or all of them in a 3 oz. sampler for $6. the food was decent - mostly american pub fare - and is especially reasonable if you stick with the happy hour menu and prices. i had a ceasar salad, and sausage made with ale over peppers, onions and garlic mashed potatoes for $6 - prices we all can afford. the service was fantastic because at 5:30, we were one of only a handful of tables that were actually in use. we need to change that... go check them out and keep them in business!

photo request #22 - city landmarks

another photo from this fantastic list, which was suggested by pasadena's award winning information officer (head on over to her blog for today's mystery history post!).

this photo is of a monument outside of city hall that happens to profile pasadena's beloved robinson boys - baseball player jackie's vision is pointed toward new york city - where he spent much of his career, while olympian mack's gaze is directed at city hall, noting his continued presence in the community.

i love that i also captured another photographer trying to take a picture of the lovely trees.

rockford peaches

the wonderful pasadena adjacent tipped me off to an exhibit happening at pasadena city college. organized by the fantastic (and locally based) baseball reliquary inc., it features many really items displayed. the above photo of course is from the rockford peaches baseball team, made famous in this fantastic movie.

from their website:

"lost to time: bygone baseball teams, an exhibition which utilizes artworks, artifacts, photographs, and documents to explore the fascinating history of a variety of semi-professional and professional baseball teams from the past. featured teams include the house of david, zulu cannibal giants, carmelita chorizeros, rockford peaches, seattle pilots, and st. louis browns."

there are a few more days to check it out at pcc before it moves on to pomona, ca.

fathers office

oh man, i should have visited this place a long time ago. two of my culinary passions meet at father's office - craft beer, and fantastic burgers. i went there with two friends after attending the los angeles opening of this film.

i'm not sure why it took me so long to get to one of the two f.o. locations - i guess the fact that neither one are really that close to pasadena meant that it wasn't ever high on our priorty list. but now that i've tasted the greatness, i'm hungry for more.

sure it was way too crowded, our tab was probably too expensive, and it's probably too yuppy for most people - but i had a great time and enjoyed some fantastic beer, and one of the best burgers i've had in a long time.

epic ride, part 5, final photo

one last photo from our epic bicycle ride. if you haven't been following all week, you can catch up by checking out this link right here.

this photo was really funny to me. obviously we weren't the first cyclists to ride along the 2. but this picture also shows that we were riding near ski areas! crazy, right? i love it.

back to pasadena tomorrow.

epic ride, part 4

as proud as we are to say that we completed the epic ride, i'm guessing that's the last time we attempt a ride like this again. oh sure, i may find myself doing something similar, but this was one for the books. a ride that at times made me think "this is the coolest thing i've ever done!", and at other times made me think "i can't believe how stupid this is". which i'm going to assume is a sign of a great day.

you can find more sky watch friday photos from all over the world by checking out the website right here.

epic ride, part 3

one of the things i'm most proud of about our massive bike ride last saturday was that my wife meredith hung in there for the whole thing - and lived to tell the story! she continues to amaze me with her cycling abilities. it is kind of hard to tell from this picture, but she is crouched perfectly as she heads down a hill into a tunnel. what a pro.

the epic ride, part 2

i should share some statistics from our epic day of riding.

time from start to finish - 10:45 hrs
maximum elevation - 6800 ft
miles logged in the saddle - 90
snow on top of the mountain - yes!
max speed on the decent to la canada - 40+ mph

happy earth day everyone! go outside and soak up some of our planet.

the epic ride.

on saturday i embarked on the most challenging bike ride of my life. i was joined by my wife and 4 of our good friends on a journey into the san gabriel mountain range. we headed out to duarte and headed north on route 39, where we proceeded to climb for 30 miles until we reached highway 2, which we took back down to pasadena.

this picture is a shot of the ladies of our group. if you click on it, you can almost make out three cyclists along the road, just beginning the worst of the climb.

over the next few days i'll share more about our adventure. in the meantime, check out a version of the route we did, and if you are up for a laugh, click on "show elevation". we are hardcore.

pasadena public library

i have posted photos of our lovely library before, but never a shot from this perspective.

by the way - did anyone catch episode two of nbc's new series 'parks & recreation'? looks like they are borrowing our beloved city hall's exterior and hallways for their ficticious city hall located in pawnee, indiana. i haven't successfully snagged a screen shot yet, but i'll keep you posted...

face-lift

one of pasadena's - how can i say this.... less attractive? - buildings is currently covered in scaffolding. i have visions of a complete make over, but i'm guessing it's just a paint job or something.

zinke's drive in

a little flashback to my pasadena neon series today. i'm not the first pasadena blogger to snap a photo of this sign - petrea captured it in all of its beauty over a year ago. check her work out at pasadena daily photo, right here.

also, you can see the often photographed trio apartments in the background.

reflection at pasadena city college

this is the picture of pcc that i always wished i had taken when i posted this one several months ago. much better, don't you think?

more sky watch friday can be found here.

photo request #21: new neighborhoods

last thursday, both petrea and cafe suggested i head out and find some neighborhoods that i don't spend much time in.

george's market is located off the main drag in pasadena, and caters to the neighborhood around it. inside you are greeted warmly with friendly and personal staff, and hey - they have quality meats, right? i love places like this. unaffiliated with a national chain, family owned and operated, and fewer and fewer of them exist today.

thanks for the suggestions - keep them coming!

success! images of pasadena in tile

several months ago i attempted to take a picture of these two beautiful mosaic tile scenes. it's a long story, which you can read all about on this post - if you have some time, go over and check out the whole story. armed with a copy of the photographers rights, i ventured over and a few days ago i succeeded in capturing these illusive images. up top you can see our beautiful city hall, and below, you can see a part of the castle green. beautiful, right? i have no idea why it was so hard to get this done, and i'm happy that i was finally able to showcase this beautiful corner of pasadena.

photo request #20: the auditorium of the city of pasadena

i can't believe it has taken me almost two years to post a picture of this building. it's probably because it has had a big construction fence around it for almost as long as we've lived here. it is a part of pasadena's newly renovated convention center complex, and it is quite an impressive building.

oh, and in case you're keeping score at home, this counts as a photo request because it is listed on this wonderful list of pasadena's historic sites that our wonderful information officer, ann erdman, passed on to me as suggestions.

edit - my wife also suggested that my blog needed a photo of this building.

leaning to the left

mennonites admittedly aren't big on sacred rituals. so we borrow from other traditions. this weekend, a group of us got together for a seder meal (click on this link for details). ryan and alethia have been organizing this event for a while now, and their interpretation of the symbolic feast has grown larger every year. this was the fourth year in a row, and it was an enjoyable social and reflective event. and the meal was spectacular.

i hope your easter/passover/long weekend experience was relaxing and enjoyable. does anyone else blend religious traditions like this, or is it just me and my wonderful friends?

oh, one more thing. the woman on the right in the picture is my friend holly - who writes this fantastic blog. go check it out!

photo request #19: water fountains in pasadena

one of the requests from earlier this week was from my co-worker jon (who has a fantastic blog you should all go check out). he suggested that i check out the numerous fountains around pasadena. while wandering around this building in search of a different photo (details on that adventure later), i found this little beauty. sure, the fountain isn't that impressive, but click on the photo. see that mosaic image of city hall above the bench? how sweet is that? thanks for the excellent suggestion jon.

keep those requests coming!

photo request #18: ck out the eastside more

thursday's post was a call out for photo requests and suggestions. today we debut a series of photo requests - starting with a request from cafe pasadena who among other things, suggested i get over to the east side of pasadena and start taking some pictures.

sandwich story is a lovely little sandwich shop located across the road from pasadena community college (which you could argue is on the east side of town). i came to know about this place on an excellent tip from my friend shana. they have a fantastic and afordable menu, and you gotta love a family run business in these times, right? plus, i know how much mr. cafe loves pasadena's eateries. go check them out!

lots more request from cafe pasadena, but we'll get to some others first.

el taquito mexicano

yesterday's post generated a TON of great photo suggestions, and my bike ride yesterday landed me several great photos. thank you to everyone who contributed!

today's photo isn't a request (we'll get to those in the coming days), but it is one of my favorite taco stands in pasadena. located on the corner of lake and villa across from the hat, they serve up some great tacos, and excellent burritos. ryan and alethia tipped me off to this place a while ago, and it has not disappointed.

for more sky watch friday photos, click on this link.

city hall spending some time with the moon

i hope you enjoy!

also, i've hit a wall with my photo taking creativity. there is just a little left in the tank. i'd appreciate some photo requests to force me to get out there and take some pictures! send them my way.

elevation

in case you live in pasadena and you've been hiding under a rock, i feel that it is my duty to inform you that u2 is coming to your hometown. they are set to play at the rose bowl on october 25, and their concert went on sale, and promptly sold out on monday. u2.com reports that at 90,000 tickets sold, this is the fastest and largest event to ever sell out at the rose bowl.

today's photo is of an elevator - which is very losely related to u2 - and was taken pointing my camera in the oposite direction of this image.

rollin' into south pasadena

we got two 30+ mile rides in this weekend. one of them took us over the bridge which crosses over the 110 from highland park to south pasadena (where this photo was taken).

los angeles beer festival review

i'm going to pronounce it a smashing success. $40 got you in the door, a festival tasting glass, and all the 4 ounce samples you wanted (provided that the brewery didn't run out of your favorite beer).

several los angeles brewers were showcased including skyscraper, the bruery, bootleggers, and angel city (shown above). while previously i had critisized the planners for including budweiser and some other larger breweries, the festival had a great selection of really creative and tasty beers.

this picture makes me chuckle - this is a beer festival, yet you can see a spiderman poster, a guy on his cell phone, bottles of mineral water, and of course sunglasses - soooooooo los angeles.

boy

another classic example of a photo i was about to delete, but for some reason it caught my eye. i was trying to snap a picture of the building in the background, while i rode my bicycle. i didn't notice the boy until i got home, and it took a little cropping to coax this one into the finished product. i'm happy with how it turned out.

arched framing: the bridge and the building

two pasadena icons in the same photo. both have been featured on this blog from time to time, and quite often together - although rarely like today's photo.

and quickly - tomorrow is the annual palm sunday peace parade that my church organizes. you can see my photos of last year's event right here. and you can learn more about the event by checking out this recent article from pasadena weekly.

consider this your invitation to make a statement and join the parade.

pasadena from the south

i snagged this shot from the water tower hill in south pasadena while out on a recent bike ride. i like that you can see both the colorado street bridge, and the vista del arroyo hotel (both subjects will be featured in tomorrow's post).

the haze hanging in the sky is perfectly typical of southern california. part marine layer, part los angeles smog - it really makes picture taking a difficult task at times.

more sky watch friday photos can be found here.

flashback to the rose parade

the corner of colorado and orange grove is painted with numerous indicators that help with rose parade set up. some are for the parade floats, some are for the grandstands, and others - like this photo - tell the tv networks where they can set up.

you can see some of my photos from this past year's parade right here.

april theme day: yellow

celebrate today's theme with a double order of burgers and golden yellow fries from in-n-out. as my friend tim says, "it's better than other fast food because it tastes so fresh!"

there are hundreds of other city daily photographers working with today's yellow theme.

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants