Shiny Penny

Penny for Your Thoughts is my favorite shop in Pasadena. I've said it before: there's no other store like it. Vintage garden items, handmade clothes, old books, jewelry, china--plus coffee, food and free wifi--it's where you go to get a gift for someone who has everything, even if that someone is you.

When I stopped by the other day the store was in an uproar because they were getting new shelves. But I can always find a pretty vignette in this unusual shop. I'd blog about the place more often if I had more ready cash. I did spend some money this visit: got a couple of iron candle sconces for the garden. The thing I love about them besides their charm is that I'll be the only one in town who has them. You can't get anything like them at OSH.

Around the corner from Penny for Your Thoughts another delightful boutique was in a different kind of uproar. In fact, the shelves going into "Penny" came out of Motif, a beautiful gift store that's closing after several years of success. As she rang up my purchase, owner Stephanie Plumb Miller told me, "Nothing negative about this. It's all positive."

Penny for Your Thoughts is at 1365 N. Hill Ave., (626) 798-1631. Motif is at 1389 E. Washington Blvd. (The two stores share the parking lot behind.) Motif is selling off everything, including fixtures, at huge discounts. On September 3rd they had several items left, including Christmas decorations. Call first to see if they're still open, (626) 398-5038.

Update from Susan C, 9/7/10 3:25pm: "I drove by Motif today and the 'closed' sign is in the window."

Thanks, Susan.

Zen Monday: #111

Zen Monday is the day you experience the photo and give us your thoughts rather than me telling you what I think the photo's about.

I look for a photo worth contemplating or, failing that, something odd or silly. And unless I absolutely must say something I stay out of the comments box to avoid influencing the discussion, which can be highbrow or lowbrow. You never know.

There's no right or wrong. We're here to have fun.

Back to the Sconeage

I know. It looks kind of like an ad.

It is, sort of. The Sconeage Bakery is one of my regular stops at the Saturday morning Farmers' Market at Victory Park because I am flat out addicted to that granola. When John comes with me he always gets a scone. He loves them in every flavor, partly because he's not picky but mostly because they're all good. And don't get me started about the cookies.

And Lionel (pronounced "Lee-o-NEL"), the owner of Sconeage, is from France. He has a French accent. He speaks French to those who speak French to him. Plus he's a nice guy. Plus his lovely daughter, who works the booth with him, is so over all that Frenchspeak.

I took all my photos yesterday at the market with the Canon 20D, which recently returned from being repaired. I'm having to learn to use it all over again. I took several shots of Dillon and Graeme, whom you may remember from last summer. They returned to the market yesterday to add a touch of class, playing their classical-contemporary fiddles with the mountains as their backdrop. (You can book the Dillon and Graeme violin duet for events; email scran7(at)att.net). The two are another year more handsome, more polished and more talented, but I'm sorry to say my photos are...not. I'm not working the camera well in bright sun and/or shadow yet.

The photo above came out okay. I emailed it to John and we messed with it on the iPad in an app called TiltShiftGenerator. Then he emailed it back to me and I uploaded it to the blog.

This stuff was probably easier in the days of darkroom.

Garages, 1

I'm interested in garages. Maybe I'll do a series. You know, like my door series, of which I've posted--I think one, so far.

Let's begin with a comparison--the quirky vs. the new. I favor the quirky for its charm, but the new has advantages. In this case you can put an actual car in the new garage. The quirky looks like it's been converted for other uses. (Love that superfluous detail.)

I find a lot of interesting garages around town, both industrial and domestic. I saw an effusive purple one the other day. I love the old ones that look like barns. The domestic ones are tricky, though. Tell you what: I'll do a garage series if folks cooperate by hiding their garbage cans and parking their cars somewhere else. This might require changing a local law or two, but we can work together on it.

Cubicle

I've heard derogatory terms for office workers: "office drones," "Dilberts," "cubicle jockeys." But working in an office can be a cushy job. There's always a place to sit, it's air-conditioned and you get free coffee. Maybe it's my upbringing in the world of academe; I've always been comfortable in offices.

When I worked in an office I used my breaks and lunch hours to write. During one job I wrote a screenplay and a couple of TV scripts on the office computer. My boss was fine with it as long as it wasn't on company time. (I admit she wasn't the usual boss.)

I prefer the freelance life, but it's no coincidence that I've created an office for myself in my home. Besides writing and photography projects I keep our books and files. I've always enjoyed managing details, probably because I'm good at organizing. Who doesn't like doing things they're good at?

I especially like offices in older buildings, preferring seasoned wood to sleek chrome. If one must work in an office outside one's home, I say let it be in Old Town.

Fall Color

We had fall for about two days. Now it's summer again. Today we expect triple digit temperatures.

I like it hot.

Yesterday I dug a hole in the back yard because I intend to plant a tree. I'm no fool; I like it hot but I wouldn't dig a hole today. I wouldn't plant a tree today, either. I want to give the poor thing a chance.

I don't know what kind of tree it'll be. It should be no more than about 25 feet tall because of electrical wires it must avoid as well as hide. And it should be a good shade tree that doesn't need to be watered too much once it's established. It could be a fruit tree. It could be deciduous. It should be an interesting tree. I don't ask much.

None of this has anything to do with the photo. What can you say about a couple of garage doors?

Theme Day: Open Air Markets

In the San Gabriel Valley there's an open-air Farmers' Market almost every day of the week. (You're going to thank me for this link to Hometown Pasadena's listing of all of them. You might want to bookmark it. I know I keep needing it.)

I've taken many other photos of Farmers' Markets, but this one is timely for today's City Daily Photo theme day because we've been under a Fruit Fly Quarantine. Sellers have been required to cover their produce with netting to keep the flies out. Official inspectors roamed the market recently, making sure the rules were followed. Everyone seemed happy to comply; no one wants to carry that fly out of the quarantine area and back to his farm. And that measly old fly didn't slow business down one bit.

Pasadena has famous open air markets of a different sort, too. Maybe next time.

Check out the other blogs that are participating in today's theme around the world.