John & Anne Wiley

2011/01/01

Muddy Waters

Filed under: Flying,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,People,Random,SB Region — John @ 00:17

We’re finally feeling better from PHFP syndrome (post-holiday food poisoning). We’ve decided it was a bad egg, and we’re not recommending this as a weight loss plan even though I’m down a cool ten pounds. Instead we’re enjoying a look back at photos, and preparing to venture out and join the fun of New Year’s Eve. Maybe that will produce some new pix that we’ll share whenever we recover from tonight. 🙂

Meanwhile, here’s one I liked from offshore of Huntington Beach on our flight to Sandy Eggo.

4074 Human Footprint

4074 Human Footprint

A few generations back, what is now the concrete-captured Santa Ana River meandered through the desert marshes into a pristine blue Pacific. Nowadays it’s mostly dry, but after a storm the accumulated toxic runoff rushes along picking up topsoil from denuded lots and strip-mined industrial farming. The shape of this edge reminds me of the yen/yang circle, here mingling life and death.

As you can see, I’m in a cheerful mood from the recent days of discomfort. OK, off to join some revelry!

2010/12/27

San Diego

Filed under: by Anne,Flying,Has Photos,Nature — Anne @ 06:40

Christmas in San Diego this year brought unusual flights both ways, and this spectacular sunset welcomed us upon arriving on the 23rd…

1028 San Diego Sunset

1028 San Diego Sunset

The next day was the sunniest of the month, so we took advantage of clear flying weather  and took a jaunt.  This is what I recall being called ‘the jetty’.  It separates Mission Beach on the right, and Ocean Beach (OB) on the left.  I’ve stood (and swum) on both sides of this, not ever imagining I’d be flying over it in this way! I like the straight and curvy shapes in this view.

1040-SD The Jetty - OB & Mission Beach

1040-SD The Jetty - OB & Mission Beach

by ~Anne

2010/12/26

New Tradition?

Filed under: Aviation,Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,People,Random,Relationships,SB Region — John @ 03:14

This might be our first Christmas at home together, and it’s wonderful to savor what might become a new tradition for us. Usually we’re with family, so this year after a warm and wonderful Christmas Eve with family in San Diego we flew home through a dreamscape. Yesterday between morning coffee and evening soup/gifts, we took a break to fly over San Diego Bay.

4118 San Diego Bay

4118 San Diego Bay

This view over the salt ponds from near the Mexican border shows the graceful arc of the Strand to Point Loma with the city skyline just visible at top-right. Flying home today we got a great view of distant snowy peaks beyond the Riverside area.

4170 Snow Beckons

4170 Snow Beckons

We were tempted to fly over them for a closer look and to avoid incoming weather so we can meet up with dear ones in the desert. But the siren song of Home was stronger, so we dodged storms to arrive just as heavy rains were approaching Santa Barbara. It’s so fun to choose in the moment, allowing our destined route to emerge. Dipping through a large opening in the clouds near Camarillo was just one in the string of choices that ended with us enjoying home made soup by a warm fire.

1195 Clouds Parted

1195 Clouds Parted

Happy holidays, everyone!

2010/12/24

Up Again

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,People,Random,SB Region — John @ 08:01

We saw some delightful sights flying to Oxnard today. First was the brown marble sea created by the muddy runoff from all the recent storms. We saw variations on this theme at every creek and river outlet along the coast.

4048 Sea of Mud

4048 Sea of Mud

Over the Oxnard coastline looking toward Ventura the dappled shadows and scampering small clouds made the familiar scene we’ve seen on so many flights, all new.

4050 Oxnard Anew

4050 Oxnard Anew

Can you make out the campground at the bottom? Those little circles each lead to pads where motorhomes park to sleep with the drumming of surf beyond the dunes. A bit to the right out of this frame is a similar shape from the air, made by picnic tables on pads around a playground. I like the embellishment created by the trees and their shadows lining the street.

4052 Playground Flower

4052 Playground Flower

Flying low reveals both geology and geometry.

2010/12/18

Rain & Memories

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,People,Random,Relationships,SB Region — John @ 23:31

I’ve finally found one photo of grand-daughter beautiful, being held by our jubilant son-in-law (posted on his FaceBook page). I’d like to post it, but we’ve had a policy of keeping pix of people off this blog and I already bent that rule yesterday with the old photo of my precious daughter as a newborn. So we’re sitting by the fire listening to the rain, and remembering all our sweet and fun times with her as we imagine how Happy Tired they are.

To keep myself busy, I’ve also looked through more of the photos from our most recent flight. I imagined just now what it would be like to have the whole family over for a holiday meal at this place downtown.

3976 Downtown Mans w/Tower

3976 Downtown Mans w/Tower

I wouldn’t want to own, much less live in such a massive old house. It would be fun to have that tower though, and add round windows all the way around. There did seem to be a gathering at Oprah’s place, since we seldom see more than one or two cars there just before sunset as this was.

3997 Oprah's Montecito Estate

3997 Oprah's Montecito Estate

Nearby was a quiet scene with the Chumash burial ground at Shalawa Meadow in the foreground and a serene seascape toward the distant clouds beyond Carp.

4003 Shalawa (Hammond's) Meadow

4003 Shalawa (Hammond's) Meadow

Generations of memories, here and in the homes we saw, and beyond to the native peoples who once gathered on that beach for meals and ceremonies.

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