Here and There Blog

In the world of how things change, this has to be one. Going down to Chicano Park to look at the murals has never made me list of something to do. With a history going back to 1973 and the building of the Coronado Bay Bridge, the Chicano Park Murals  are some that most people in San Diego have seen from the freeway but not taken the time to see them up close. That's changed with the revitalization of Barrio Logan. With plenty of free parking, local restaurants and micro-breweries, this is now a pleasant excursion in San Diego.  There's lot of shade and places for children to play.  Here's a few from Saturday.

Sometimes I wonder if my life can get any stranger and the answer is always, "why yes, it can!" I do to myself and truly, I can't help it. I get an idea and have to see where it goes and what happens.  This takes me to my birthday weekend (tomorrow 4/28) and the idea to do something new. But why do 1 thing new when you can do 2? First up - Airbnb. It's not my thing since I'm all about the hotel points and free stays. Since I sold my house though, I thought, why not try out Airbnb and use it to explore neighborhoods? Then I thought, why not go someplace where you've never been and even dismissed the area as having no reason to exist? So here I am in Barrio Logan in a little loft that's quite charming, on a street that looks sketchy, and basically fish out of water. Essentially I seem to have come full circle in my life because when I was 8 or 9 and in Camp Fire Girls, my Indian name was Fish Out of Water. I've long since forgot how it was spelled ...

April - when the butterflies emerge at the Safari Park and are on display for their short lives. You have to get there early, brave crowds, and stop the urge to slap people that try to catch the butterflies even though the Keepers stress over and over "hands off!" After all that, it is cool to see the different species and watch them flutter about.  When they land on your head, you're kind of stuck for a while.

I don't know why it took me a lifetime to go to Laguna Beach. It's only a short drive north of San Diego and I'm in the OC all the time. I've always thought of this as a really remote place and it is and isn't. Now that I've sold my house and am not quite ready to buy a new one, I decided to explore. A place that's know for the Festival of Arts  there wasn't as much art around town as I was expecting. There are dozens of art studios though and if you enjoy browsing around a true art community then this town is for you. Walking and exercise with a great view is what people who don't want to wander art galleries do. This is me. Sculptures at sunrise. I'm glad I stayed there for a couple niights. It's a beautiful beach and easy exercising but unless you are really into art, overall it can be boring.  If you like art, it's the best place ever. Now if I owned a home on the cliff overlooking the ocean, I'd totally want to l...

Bring on the allergy meds! The Macy's NYC has an annual flower show that is guaranteed to set off sneezing.  I went there in the morning and a day later, I'm still congested. The theme was vaguely some sore of fairy tale land. I'm not sure how the skulls fit in to the concept.  Butterflies and spring seem to go together a bit more naturally than doom and gloom.  Close up of the pollen blasters. Books fit in well with the theme. Fire (or flower) breathing dragon was the highlight but hard to photograph.

Behind the scenes tour of Radio City - it was short and enjoyable with enough time to look at almost everything. The acoustics are clear and when you are in the back row of the hall you can hear people talking on the stage. It would be fun to go to a concert here. The women's restroom doubles up as a talking room, waiting room and putting on more make-up room! Don't have private conversations on stage, everyone will hear! Art on the wall Crazy Rockette's costume

With a friend on her first trip to NYC which means doing repeat and more intensive tourist stuff than normal. Here's the view from Top of the Rock.  It's dark because of the protective glass to keep people from falling off. Evening carriage ride in Central Park. This is something that I never thought I'd do but it turned out to be relaxing after a long day of walking.  The fountains are turned off for another week until it warms up enough to not freeze over. I was trying to get a shot of the purple flowers on the tree. They're just starting to bloom.  And the evidence that I really did this!

Easter and April Fool's Day are over and it seemed like there were far less pranks this year than in any in history. Maybe fake news stories are enough and no additional jokes are needed. The retainer is still really tight. I read the Invisalign boards and found out that part of this is due to the material in the retainer is tougher than the aligners since the retainers need to last a year and not a couple of weeks. I can get them on easy enough but they're still difficult to remove. I still think they are moving my teeth too much and notice that if I leave them out for more than four hours, it feels like I'm starting over. The next dentist appointment is in a few weeks. I'm looking forward to finding out if there's a difference or if I'm imagining everything.