Tear-Down

They're tearing down a building at the corner of Fair Oaks and Corson—or Fair Oaks and the 210 Freeway, same difference, since Corson parallels the freeway.

I found a gap in the fence and took a bunch of photos yesterday. For some reason this is the one that interests me most. Maybe it's the graffiti on the part of the building still standing, or the unscathed (albeit dusty) building across the street, or the dome of City Hall in the distance. But I think I like the vehicles. They remind me of farm machinery and growing up.

I stayed by the fence and watched for a while (wouldn't dare go into a hard-hat area without permission). It doesn't take a lot of humans to tear down a building. It takes a few patient drivers and some big, brute machines.

Toxic Wiz

Tell me honestly now: if you're going to Rule This Town, is "Toxic Wiz" quite the right, um, handle?

Buried Treasure Comes A C(r)opper

When I checked my email the other day, I found a message from Lieutenant Jones at the Pasadena Police Department. The subject line was "BOXES AT THE BRIDGE."

Immediately I knew why. Some commenters had hinted at it when I posted about buried treasure on Monday. At the time, the thought of real danger hadn't crossed my mind. But the police can't take chances with secret boxes buried under the Colorado Street Bridge—not with this weekend's celebration coming up.

I called the PD but Lieutenant Jones had gone for the day. So I responded to his email with as much detail as I could. Secretly, though, I hoped the police would call me the next morning so I could lead them to the boxes. Maybe they'd even let me take a picture.

YAY!

Above, Officers Mark Abare (left) and Bill Shipman (right) examine one of the boxes we found. The box from my photo was gone, but we found two still buried. From my photo, the police had expected bigger boxes. These little things didn't scare them.

It was a thrill. I felt like Miss Marple, allowed to come along on a big investigation. I cannot thank these gentlemen enough. They were as nice as could be.

But I'm sorry, guys. The boxes were empty.

Why would someone bury empty boxes?

NEWS FLASH, 9:25PM: I was in the Arroyo again late today. (Okay, that's not exactly a news flash.) The photo below was taken from where the officers stood, looking up toward where I took the photo from yesterday morning. The hillside's all torn and trampled. Hmm. I wonder if geocachers read Pasadena Daily Photo. Or maybe someone came looking for that Zeppelin CD.

Flat-Cat

This kitty lives at the Curtin House on the grounds of the Pasadena Museum of History. She's very friendly. Don't worry about her ear. It's there, it's just a little flat. I've had this photo for a while. Been wanting to use it and finally decided to put it up this morning.

My timing's good. I checked the Museum's website and tomorrow (Thursday) is Family Free Day from 4-7PM. Click on the link to see what they've got planned. Then if it looks like fun give them a call at (626) 577-1660, ext. 10, because reservations are recommended.

I can't promise kitty close-ups, but there'll be plenty of other photo ops. That I can guarantee.

The Dragon(fly)'s Lair

Pasadena Daily Photo was born on January first of this year. In an early post I talked about the Central Arroyo Stream Restoration project, spearheaded by the Arroyo Seco Foundation. To quote their website, "the Central Arroyo Seco subwatershed begins immediately below Devil’s Gate Dam and terminates at the Colorado Street Bridge crossing."

I took a walk through there and I can tell you, they're making fine progress. It's positively sylvan down there. I'd expect to see hobbits or trolls or even Minnipins. Yeah, you can still see the earth movers under the bridge. You can also see the progress those earth movers have made.

And I don't know where they got those dragonflies. They're magnificent. It's just hard to get a picture of one.

Zen Monday: Buried Treasure

I found this box hidden in brush beneath the Colorado Street Bridge. I had to climb to get a look at it. More boxes were buried near it. You can see the corner of one in the foreground of this photo.

I didn't touch them.

Escapee

On our neighborhood walks, Boz and I often pass by the North Pasadena Church of Christ, and I admire this tree on the church property. Long ago someone built a wall around it, but a tree can't be bound by such insignificance. I'm pleased no one has attempted to imprison it in again now that it has busted free. Stone walls do not a prison make.

While I was taking this photo I heard the choir practicing. They sounded good. Richard Lovelace might have enjoyed the music.