Busy

One Word Sunday: busy

Blue

One Word Sunday: blue

Cellpic Sunday 4.30.23

Lens-Artists #246: Still Life

Traditional still life tends to feature tableware, fruit, and dead chickens, at least in my mind. Patti, though, offers us the chance to go beyond the trite with either composed or natural still life shots.

Although it looks composed, except for the framing, this shot is entirely as I found it in a house in France. I think it’s one of my favorite photos, at least of this type.

This simple shot is from Southern California. The white background allows the plants to shine while the cracks give the wall character.

My photo of my morning tea at TeaLula in Park Ridge, Illinois was slightly composed, as I arranged the teapot and cup and saucer so that I could get them in the shot with the flowers. If you’re ever in or near Park Ridge, definitely make this delightful shop one of your stops!

I’ve driven past this abandoned gas station so many times to and from Southern California and this trip I finally stopped. So glad I did! It might not be on Route 66, but it definitely has that feel.

This outdoor scene advertised the store behind it, an attractive and unusual thing to see in the city.

The desert has its own beautiful still life, a combination of soft and sharp.

Thanks for giving life to contemporary still life, Patti. I’m still looking for a dead chicken for the next time. 🙂

Thursday Doors…tiny doors 2

Last week I forgot to continue the current tiny doors series so I’m remedying that today. After looking at the doors, we can stop at Sweet Wheat for a French pastry and some coffee before strolling to the beach. Who’s in?

Thursday Doors 4.6.23

Wordless Wednesday…Joshua Tree wildflowers

March of the wildflowers

Parking garage art

Our daughter and son-in-law enjoy coffee and I enjoy street art so our interests coincided one morning in a parking garage where we made a stop for a caffeine fix. Question. Is it street art when it’s not actually along the street? No matter. It was fun to see whatever you call it.

Naturally I had to get out of the car for photos but as it was under the building, not only was whatever sunlight came in a factor but those pesky cars that insist in parking in parking garages caused me to have to squeeze in front of several of them, hence the angle and light in some of the shots. I like them all but the dolphins are my favorite.

As far as the coffee shop and its caffeine-seeking clients are concerned, the best art is probably this one (which apparently wants you to have your coffee in Joshua Tree National Park.) All in all, it was a good way to start the day.

Friday flowers…daisies

Once the weather and our health had finally improved, his parents and I took my grandson to the park where his perpetual energy found a better outlet than in a small, two-bedroom apartment. There I discovered signs of spring, one of which were a number of these small daisies in patches throughout the grass. I felt much as Edna did, only substituting “photograph” for “touch.” I fell far short of a hundred, but they certainly made me glad.

“I will be the gladdest thing under the sun! I will touch a hundred flowers and not pick one.”
― Edna St. Vincent Millay

Thursday Doors…surfin’ USA

Our California vacation didn’t turn out exactly as planned (understatement!) but I did manage to find two more power-full doors that I thought you might like. After deciding to use the slider, I had a moment of panic when I couldn’t find it, only to realize it’s called “image compare.” 🙂 As we were in southern California, our son-in-law surfs (not pictured on this first box!), and maybe because these boxes featured surfboards, a reference to the Beach Boys seemed apropos.

You get a bonus skateboard in this second set. A side note: one of the locations mentioned in “Surfin’ USA” is Redondo Beach, home of these boxes and our family.

If everybody had an ocean
Across the U.S.A
Then everybody’d be surfin’
Like Californi-a
You’d see them wearing their baggies
Huarache sandals too
A bushy bushy blond hairdo
Surfin’ U.S.A

Thursday Doors 3.9.23

Give me one minute…

and three seconds and I’ll gift you with what we saw on a chilly beach walk this (Monday) night.