New Haven Union Station
I picked up Peter at Union Station this afternoon. It was a beautiful day.
Off to Montreal tomorrow to watch Friday’s France / Germany WWC match. O Canada.
Summer Solstice
Yesterday was the longest day of the year, and there was a little event at the UMASS Sunwheel. We put the dog in the car and went down to see what was happening. It was a beautiful evening.
This has been the greenest summer I can remember in a long time, although that could relate to the fact that I was in California earlier this month, and the contrast is striking.
Willard Suitcases / Back to Work / Flora T
I’ll be back in Rotterdam tomorrow, and am looking forward to shooting again. We are hoping to finish up with Margaret D’s things soon, and once the Exploratorium cases are back from California, that will just about do it.
I have just uploaded Flora T’s photos to the willardsuitcases.com site and it is worth checking out. She had some amazing possessions. When you go to the site, click on “The Cases”, select Flora T, and be sure to select view “all” at the bottom of the page.
My friend Lin Stuhler has just put up a few new posts on her site. Well worth checking out. Click here and here.
I hope to post some images from tomorrow when I get home in the evening. Thanks for following.
Ithaca / Drone / Peter Carroll
I’m in Ithaca for an interesting meeting about the suitcases, and have been staying with Peter Carroll. He has been flying drones for his work for a few years now and just got the latest Phantom 3. Very cool and amazing to watch. Here is a link to some of his test footage. Digital imaging has changed the world for videographers and photographers to such an extent that our ability to do new an interesting things is almost unbelievable.
Have a great week everybody.
Disney / The Huntington
Cristine grew up going to Disneyland as a very young child. Her parents would drop off all three kids when the park opened and they would pick them up when it closed. Many of her popular culture references are Disney related. Once when we were snorkeling in the Caribbean, she popped up from a dive and said “It’s just like the submarine ride at Disneyland”! We would go to the park while visiting her family when Peter was little, and I really got to like it as well.
We had a wonderful day there on Wednesday which included a fine meal at the Blue Bayou. Our table overlooked the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, and I was able to make this nice picture.
Yesterday we went to The Huntington near Pasadena, which in its own way is just as cool as Disneyland. We started off in the Botanical Center which was full of orchids.
Then moved on to the rose garden.
Made the obligatory stop to see Blue Boy.
Which is breathtaking. Gainsborough had it rockin’.
Asked about Turner, and they had this, “The Grand Canal. A Street Scene in Venice”. Here is a detail.
Yikes!
And then walked into this room and nearly fell over when I saw this.
When we were in the American Art building I was somehow reminded of a painting in my brother’s and my bedroom when we were children. All I could remember was a guy lashed to a small boat being circled by sharks. So I did a quick search on my phone (guy lashed to a small boat being circled by sharks painting) and saw this. I don’t know why we had it in our house, and as a child I remember being frightened by it. Bob, do you remember this?
Just got back from a last visit to In-n-Out. I guess it’s time to go home.
California Bounty
I always feel a bit of an East Coast rube when I come to California. Even though I am here quite a lot, I’m always blown away by what grows out here. This lemon tree is in front of Lynne’s house. (I think I’ve posted about it before.) Last night I went out and picked about 30, came in and squeezed ’em and put the juice in 5 different ice cube trays. She now has lemon juice for the next few months. We’ll try to carry on as many as we can on the flight home.
This morning we went down to San Juan Capistrano for brunch at The Ramos House Cafe. Amazing.
The Jacaranda trees are at the tail end of blooming, and the flowers are all over the place.
And I think this comes from what is called a fried egg plant. The white part of the flower is so delicate. And huge!
Huntington Beach
We went to Huntington Beach today. Lots of reasons to go, including the Purina Proplan Incredible Dog Challenge Western Regional competition. Yesterday was the dog surfing, which I am really sorry we missed, but today was the “dogs leaping into water competition”, which I have always wanted to see live. It was great, and there were tons of dogs there just hanging out.
Including this guy just chillin’ in the bleachers.
I got a chocolate milkshake at the Ruby’s at the end of the pier.
It is always nice to look down at the surfers.
It was nice and cool in the shade of the pier.
We then walked down the beach for a couple of miles. Lots of people, very diverse and interesting, and the water was so clear and refreshing. I haven’t taken my shoes off and walked in the Pacific for a very long time.
Angles v Tigers
We went to a great baseball game tonight. The Angels beat the Tigers 12-2, and there was more great action in one game than I have seen in a long time. In addition to Chris Iannetta’s 7th inning grand slam (above; love the giant flames in center field), there was a triple (kind of rare), a run scored on a passed ball, a run scored on a walk, a successful suicide squeeze play, and a rundown with two players on third base for a time before the lead runner was thrown out returning to third. Great fun.
Long Beach (LGB)
Flew to California last night. I love the Long Beach airport. You can disembark through the front or the back of the plane and walk to the terminal on the tarmac. Very old school.
Pelham, MA Town Hall
I have volunteered to do some work for the Pelham Historical Commission in documenting the Pelham Town Hall. This is the second floor of the building, which was originally built in 1743 (this floor was added later). Pelham is historically significant as it was the home of Daniel Shays, leader of Shays Rebellion.
I was in the building for a short visit last week, and will plan on spending a lot more time there over the next month. Should be fun.
Jon Crispin's Notebook 
2 comments