Palace of Fine Arts

Palace of Fine Arts: Dome and Fountain

The Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, originally built in 1915 for the Panama-Pacific Exposition, as seen on a November afternoon. This place would fit in perfectly in a Maxfield Parrish painting, and I was pleasantly surprised when we left the museum that evening to see a Maxfield Parrish sky behind it.

Maxfield Parrish Sky II

St. Patrick’s Day Moon & Jupiter

St. Patrick’s Day Moon & Jupiter on Flickr.

Yesterday I looked at the moon and Jupiter and thought, there’s going to be another conjunction tomorrow, isn’t there? Then I forgot, but fortunately I had to make a grocery run.

I took this photo just minutes ago. If you’re in the western half of North America, and the sky is clear, you can walk outside RIGHT NOW and see this.

Manhattan Beach at Night

Manhattan Beach at Night on Flickr.

My first attempt to spot Comet Pan-Starrs on Monday evening didn’t work out, but I got to look back at the coast from the end of the pier, which was nice. You can see the Palos Verdes hills/peninsula in the background to the right.

Read about my comet-watching experience.

Looking for comet Pan-STARRS last night. A lot of people had chosen the same hillside park…

Looking for #comet Pan-STARRS last night. A lot of people had chosen the same hillside park and were sharing their telescopes and binoculars as we watched the #sunset over the clouds, then the barely crescent #moon coming into view, and finally the comet itself. More at K2R: Comet Watch

Authentic Voodoo Doughnuts Line

Authentic Voodoo Doughnuts Line on Flickr.

On my trip to Portland last month, we decided we had to make one stop at Voodoo Doughnuts. It was suggested that we check out the secondary location out in the suburbs to avoid the crowds at the downtown location.

We got the authentic experience anyway.

Bonus: The twenty-somethings in line behind us were singing Les Mis.

Downtown San Diego’s nighttime skyline, seen from Harbor Island across the bay…

Downtown San Diego’s nighttime skyline, seen from Harbor Island across the bay to the west. You can see the light trails from a couple of boats. The yellowish sky is the reflection of street lights on low-lying clouds. I have a wider shot that shows how much darker the sky is away from the city.

This was taken during last year’s Comic-Con. I figured I’d post it this week because the first round of hotel rooms go on sale this Wednesday. These are non-refundable, outside of downtown, and in some cases specific packages with minimum stays, but if you already have tickets and want to avoid the “Hoteloween” rush when the rest of the rooms go on sale, it might be worth taking a look.

Either way, you might be interested in my collection of Tips for Comic-Con.

Sunset Clouds Above Downtown LA (2/2)

Sunset Clouds Above Downtown LA (2/2) on Flickr.

Gorgeous day after a rainstorm. I kept checking to see whether the San Gabriel Mountains had snow, but the clouds never quite lifted. Even at sunset only the lower slopes were visible…but those clouds made for some spectacular sunset viewing.