Archiving my Twitter, Facebook and other social network activity
I had an enjoyable day at WonderCon today, though my shoulders felt like they were going to fall off since I was carrying around some rather large books. It was a good balance of autograph hunt, bargain hunt, sightseeing, costume spotting and events, with a lot going on but not too many people to move.
First batch of photos is up on Flickr.
Orange clouds underlit by the sunset
Happy Fourth of July!
I like the way this one just lights up the cloud of smoke. It reminds me of pictures of nebulae in deep space, clouds of gas reflecting the light from nearby stars.
I’ve got a few more shots in this Independence Day 2010 photoset.
Today is moving day. I’ve spent most of my life in Orange County, where the eastern skyline (when not blocked by trees and buildings) is dominated by the Santa Ana Mountains. The two highest peaks, Santiago Peak and Modjeska Peak, are known locally as Saddleback because of the shape they form together.
We’re not moving far — just to the South Bay — but it’s going to be weird not seeing this landmark on a day-to-day (well, non-smoggy day-to-day) basis. You can see it from that far away, but it takes a very clear horizon and a very clear sky. On a good day I can just make out the silhouette from LAX.
This shot was taken in Lemon Heights, where you can (usually) see a lot more than just the silhouette.
Well, technically, it’s Old Town Irvine during a lull in a storm last December. The clouds were moving very fast, with light and shadow moving over the empty fields and office parks, and I waited several minutes for the sun to play over this scene.
I particularly liked the contrast of the dead brown tumbleweeds scattered around the bright green meadow.
My one regret with this photo is not being able to capture the steep drop-off into a wash right below the frame. I could get the wash, or the sky, but not both.
Composite of two photos of the University of California, Irvine Student Center: One taken in 1997, the other in 2007.
The biggest difference (aside from the time of day) is that the Student Center itself was torn down and replaced with a new complex, which is why I focused on the center area for the cut-out. The Irvine Barclay Theatre, Administration Building and Student Services II, ring road, and the office building in the distance are all still there.
See also my write-up about taking the second photo.
Los Angeles skyline seen from US Highway 101, taken on a clear April day…and a much cooler day than today’s record-setting 113 degrees!
Looking north across the park on a spring afternoon during WonderCon 2010. It rained most of the weekend, but the one day we were (mostly) indoors was the one day that the sun came out.
The tiered building to the left is the Marriott Marquis, the convention hotel. The church across the way is St. Patrick’s. The tall building behind it is the Four Seasons hotel.
Photo: Yerba Buena Gardens
Santiago Canyon after Rain, originally uploaded by Kelson.
Looking roughly southeast on the side of Santiago Canyon Road, somewhere between Irvine Lake and the turnoff for Silverado Canyon. The peaks of Saddleback, with a dusting of snow barely visible at larger sizes, are shrouded in clouds.
Taken between rainstorms last January.
Somewhere in Cuyamaca State Park (now Cuyamaca Rancho State Park) in the mountains east of San Diego, California. We camped at Paso Picacho, but I don’t remember whether this was near the campsite or spotted during a hike.
This was taken in April 2002, about a year and a half before a devastating fire destroyed large areas of the park.
(It was also about a year before I got my first digital camera, so this image was scanned from a print.)
Ugh. Got an idiot posting about “chemtrails” on my rainbow cloud photo. The only chemical needed is H2O. *plonk*
According to Flickr, this is my most interesting* photo that isn’t someone in costume at a fan convention. It’s #68 on the list!
The photo was taken December 18, 2008, after a storm passed through Orange County and did something unusual: it blanketed the Santa Ana Mountains with snow. Saddleback typically gets a light dusting a couple of times a year, and the next peak down sometimes gets a little snow that melts by noon, but it’s rare for the snow to reach any lower.
The vantage point is a housing development on Quail Hill, looking southeast over the Irvine Spectrum area. You can see the Great Park Balloon near the left. Saddleback itself is out of frame to the right, but you can see its base (the peaks are covered in clouds) in the panorama I shot at the same time.
*Flickr’s “interestingness” is a measure that combines a count of views, comments, and “favorites.” The exact balance is secret, but from what I can tell, comments outweigh favorites, which outweigh views.
Maxfield Parrish Sky, originally uploaded by Kelson.
One night last October, I stepped out of the office building and felt like I’d stepped into a Maxfield Parrish painting. The whole sky looked like this. (Or at least the half that was visible.) It literally stopped me in my tracks.
I spent the next 15 minutes walking around the parking lot, watching the lighting on the clouds change as the sun set and taking pictures.
Santa Ana Mountains Snow – Quail Hill View, originally uploaded by Kelson.
Monday’s storm didn’t leave much snow on Saddleback (though the San Gabriel Mountains were pretty well covered), but it’s been cold enough that I half-suspect this weekend’s storm will leave a bit more.
So here are a couple of views of the Santa Ana Mountains and the Irvine Spectrum from last December, seen from Quail Hill. The first was taken the morning after the storm ended. The second was taken the following day at lunchtime. I’ve also got a full panorama taken at the same time as the first photo.
Santa Ana Mountains Snow – Quail Hill Revisited, originally uploaded by Kelson.
Strawberry Flower, originally uploaded by Kelson.
My wife and I stopped at a nursery to pick up a sage plant this weekend, and there was a shelf of strawberries with one solitary flower.
I have no idea how I managed to get something this sharp with my phone!
The main outdoor swimming pool at Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California. Taken on a tour last February.
This was at least the third time I’ve been to Hearst Castle, and the second time as an adult. I vaguely remember visiting when I was eight, or ten, or somewhere around that age. Years later, in 2008, my wife and I planned a trip to San Francisco and decided to do it in stages, including a stopover at Hearst Castle. We only had time for one of the four tours, so when we planned another trip this year, we made sure to include another stop in San Simeon. This time we had a little more sense of how much time was involved, and managed to fit in two of the remaining tours.
At some point, we need to head back during spring or summer when they’re running the garden tour.
Morning Glories, originally uploaded by Kelson.
Last year my wife and I found some morning glories growing in our backyard, and decided to train them with twine to grow along the back wall. They did phenomenally well…and then produced a zillion seed pods, reminding us that they’re often classified as weeds.
They’re gone now.
Last Friday (Oct 3): attended alenxa’s cousin’s wedding, held on a boat that cruised back and forth in Newport Harbor. Lots of people I’d only met once before — at our wedding.
Most of the week: fixing Katie’s computer. Drive dying. Needed to (a) verify that it was the drive, and just the drive. (b) get a new drive. (c) install it. (d) install Mac OS X on the new drive. (e) Transfer all the data. (a) and (e) took the longest.
Tuesday: Finished watching entire series of Blake’s 7. The good episodes hold up quite well after ~30 years. (The bad ones… well, they were bad to start with.)
Yesterday: Checked out the restaurants at the new “Diamond Jamboree” center at Jamboree and Alton. Decided to try Tokyo Table sometime when we weren’t wearing funny T-shirts.
Friday: Finished reading Gateway. About to start on Neil Gaiman’s latest, The Graveyard Book. (I skipped the reading in Santa Monica on Monday, but my brother and his fiancee went to the one in San Francisco last week…and were kind enough to send us the extra copy of the book!)