John & Anne Wiley

2010/05/31

Quiet At Home

We enjoyed a quiet Sunday, puttering around the house and entertaining a friend. That fits the quiet mood of some pix from Friday’s flight to Lompoc. According to a comment on my first Edhat post from the flight, the Knapp’s “castle” ruin now has caretakers. I imagine the silence up there must be powerful. Especially at night, when the coyotes aren’t singing and you can hear every little sound of nature around you, looking over sleepy Paradise Valley to the Sierra Madre beneath silent stars beyond.

6543 Knapp's Castle

6543 Knapp's Castle

There’s a different sort of quiet around the mansion at Michael Jackson’s former Neverland Ranch. It had been unkempt after he moved out, but since his passing it has been restored. The massive oaks stand quietly as if contemplating the people and activities from past times. There’s something so forlorn to me about this place, and it will be interesting to see what will happen there next. See our photo page for other aerials, including the train depot, zoo and rides.

6561 Neverland Mansion

6561 Neverland Mansion

Another study in celebrity retreats we “visited” again was Brad Pitt’s place on the beach near El Capitan. I wonder if he visits there or will sell now that he’s mostly in New Orleans, and what the white open tent is used for (and how it has survived the freaky ferocious winds we’ve had this year!). I imagine him sitting with loved ones quietly sipping some cool drink and listening to the waves lapping on his beach.

6590 Brad Pitt's Beachhouse

6590 Brad Pitt's Beachhouse

As we tied Tripp’s tail to the ground back at her home airport, we heard a bumblebee busily browsing little yellow flowers. Darting so quickly even this 1/800 second exposure is blurred, it still evoked a lazy summer mood in us.

6607 Browsing Bee

6607 Browsing Bee

Perhaps our languid flight, glimpses of quiet homes, and the enchanting weaving of the bee all fit somehow with the quiet mood of our holiday weekend. Shall we go untie Tripp today and have a new adventure?

2010/05/30

Young & Old

We flew to Lompoc today, and at the airport a man was trying to find someone willing to show his son an airplane. We of course gave them a Tripp tour, and it was heartwarming to see dad’s patience and the youthful excitement. Dad was excited too, and walked over to Above All to see about learning to fly.

6507 Future Pilot

6507 Future Pilot

Before heading for Lompoc we flew over iMadonnari at Mission Santa Barbara to check the progress, and it was quite a contrast with yesterday. Many of the chalk art projects are nearing completion, and the place is alive with people.

6510 iMadonnari

6510 iMadonnari

Tomorrow if we don’t fly I’ll post more pix and tales from today, but for now I’m going to rest and relax in the warm glow of slow flight over scenic wonders.

2010/05/23

Socializing

Filed under: Happiness,People,Random,Relationships,SB Region — John @ 04:25

Our fairly new retirement is a delightful blend of quiet time and connecting with people we care about. Today we went to a party and then had friends over.

The party was celebrating a wonderful woman who just endured the mixed blessing of unemployment. You know the feeling, lots of free time and enough savings to go for a while but the nagging fear you might never work again and die of starvation and neglect? Well, this party was to celebrate the new job and the freedom to fully enjoy these final days of unemployment.

0797 Employment Party

As her husband cut the (delicious!) cake, it had an almost wedding-like quality. We all felt so happy for them!

0799 Cake Study

Some were also happy about the cake, and this guy had a particularly studious enthusiasm. 🙂

In all, it’s been a relaxing and warm day that began with lounging around, transitioned to a leisurely drive into town for a library stop before the party at Rocky Nook Park, home for our visitors, and now a reputedly entertaining movie. What will tomorrow bring?

2010/05/01

Aloft At Last!

Filed under: Aviation,Flying,Happiness,Nature,Random,SB Region — John @ 04:06

It’s been a while since we’ve flown, and my “feathers” were getting itchy! Since our last flight, we waited a few days in order not to seem addicted, then the fog rolled in, then the winds came. Today we decided even with the wind reporting 16 gusting to 21kt, we’d at least go to the airport for a look. On the Hwy.217 toward UCSB we could see a 172 in the pattern, and we cheered loudly.

I got some great shots of UCSB and other sights around town, but one of the more unusual was this banner tow traildragger. Not just the massive radial engine on such a tiny old plane, but the way seals (sea lions? sea elephants?) were watching it.

6106 Banner Tow

6106 Banner Tow

6103 Volleyball Viewers

6103 Volleyball Viewers

These are the volleyball courts on East Beach, and today there was a massive tournament on West Beach that probably attracted the banner advertiser. While flying around, I guess the pilot decided to entertain all of the volleyball players and the pinnipeds offshore.

Today I finished importing our Big Adventure blog from blogspot.com onto this WordPress.com blog where I find it easier to write, and to insert photos. Hopefully this ease will encourage me to start blogging more frequently. We’ll see… 🙂

2009/11/02

Comeback

Here’s another pic of the morning market we enjoyed in Tallahassee.
Our flight to New Orleans was mostly hazy, but this rippled shoreline near Biloxi fascinated me.

Landing at the smaller Lakeport airport, we saw some evidence of Katrina but from the air mostly things seemed either rebuilt or removed. Our cab driver into Big Easy shared heartbreaking stories of his personal trials from the storm and aftermath. Still, he spoke of resuming his tuba playing to join a band. He gave us tips on where to go for the best parties and music. Before long we roamed the French Quarter and beyond, joining the sort of glorious celebration that New Orleans does best. Sometimes all eyes were on the street, and sometimes everyone would celebrate a balcony display.

Some of the costumes were dark, and some of the revelers were silent and serious.
We saw jesters watching and walking amid the smiles and cheers, with almost sad expressions. I wondered if there were more such participants in festivities since the storm, with so much suffering still fresh.

The juxtaposition of life and death walks these streets, as it has since early days.
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