jb

Ordinarily I wouldn't post a blurry photo, but I don't want you to miss meeting jb from Mainz Daily Photo.

Being part of the San Gabriel Valley blogging community has brought me myriad blessings. Being part of the City Daily Photo community expands those blessings around the globe. I've made virtual friendships with bloggers worldwide. Meeting them in person is the grandest blessing of all.

jb recently spent two weeks in France where he and Mrs. jb met Nathalie from Avignon in Photos. He had a couple of busy days back in Germany, then he flew to Los Angeles. A 10-hour lay-over gave him time for a drive to Pasadena. I am not amazed that he and Mrs. jb have visited the Huntington Library and Gardens and the Norton Simon Museum, or that they have a friend who works at the local J. Crew.

We had coffee at Intelligentsia (his suggestion--he knows Pasadena pretty well). Then we walked a bit in Old Town and I took the photo for yesterday's post. (jb claims to have assisted and indeed, he gave moral support.) When we parted I headed home to work. jb was off to get a meal then back to LAX and a flight to New Zealand. In a later email he said last Thursday "will be forever missing" from his autobiography.

I'd trade a day of my autobiography for world travel. But I'm getting wistful.

I feel bad about giving you a blurry photo of this smart, funny, interesting, international man. (At his blog you will find examples of his wry sense of humor.) But I believe he shines through my bad photography and you can see who he is in spite of me.

jb and I have a deal. I'm posting my photo of him today and he's posting his photo of me. He took his picture with an iPhone. I took mine with a Canon 20D. I haven't seen his photo on the computer screen yet, but I believe it'll prove good photography is more about the photographer than the camera.

Here's an Old Town photo of a superfluous detail. Not blurry. Just to redeem myself.

Zen Monday: #149

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

You might want to click on this one to enlarge it. Then make a comment. Say what comes to mind.

For further Monday Zen, feel free to read and comment on my new short-short fiction, Rooms, at the Rose City Sisters Flash Fiction blog.

Arroyo Kenpo

I've seen many artists working in the Arroyo Seco, but this is the first time I've seen martial artists.

When I came across Juan Serrano (that's him on the right) and his pupil Clayton practicing, um, judo? karate? tai chi?--I thought, why not? You're not going to find a more beautiful place to work.

It turns out they were practicing a mixture of things called the Casa de Kenpo Martial Arts System. The two demonstrated some of the moves Juan teaches in Glendale. You can check out Juan's youtube videos here.

What Juan and Clayton were working on alternated between fight moves and something like dance. Because nature alternates between peace and violence, the birdsong and dappled sunlight of the Arroyo seemed the perfect fit.

Gut Yontiff

John and I had just finished a late dinner last night when there came a knocking at our door.

Magazine salesmen. I'd seen them in the neighborhood earlier and I wasn't going to answer. But do magazine salesmen giggle?

I opened the door. Four pretty girls stood in a row on our front porch, dressed in bright costumes. I'd make you guess what they did next but we'd be here all day.

They sang "Jingle Bells."

I ran for the camera.

When they finished singing, they shouted, "Trick or Treat!"

They deserved something good. We didn't have candy in the house but the young ladies were willing to accept fruit. I invited them out to the back yard and we picked oranges in the dark.

How did you spend your Friday evening?

Bathe R Doggie

Some people would like to wait even longer between baths than they already do, but some people run in the Arroyo and roll in unspeakable things until they stink to high heaven so as unfortunate as it may appear and as pitiful as they may look, some people are finally forced to bathe, as cruel as it seems to some people.

Thank goodness we've found Bathe R Doggie. Or, to be more accurate, thank Bellis. She recommended the place and we checked it out yesterday. They'll wash your dog, do his pedi-pedi, clean his teeth and--and more. (Yes, that, too.)

You can choose to wash him yourself in one of their nice, clean tubs. They provide everything you need, even a little apron, which I didn't notice until I was soaked and almost finished rinsing. But that's okay. I enjoy the bonding experience Boz and I share when I bathe him (even though he loathes it). At least one of us gets to bond and the other, once the experience is endured, gets a treat.

At last, one person is clean and the other person is covered in soapy dog hair. We come home exhausted and some people get a nap.

Alliance Frankaise

The official address of the Alliance Francaise de Pasadena is 34 E. Union Street. (Pardon my lack of cedille on the c in "Francaise," but Blogger freaks out when I try to insert such things. There should also be an accent aigu on that first e in cedille, but...)

Anyway, the entrance is not on Union but in this little alley off of Union near Raymond. I can't remember the name of the alley and apparently Google Maps can't remember it either.

The Alliance holds classes in French, leads tours to France, and generally lends cachet to Pasadena. (Some of us like to think it's the other way around.)

Regardless of the alley's appellation, yesterday this bicyclette (no accent needed) made the scene look just a soupcon (sorry once again) more French.

Theme Day: Under Construction

A few years ago, the eyesore at the corner of Washington and El Molino was a problem liquor store that plagued the neighborhood. This photo is almost exactly two years old.

Now, thanks to Joel Bryant and Trademark Development Group, it's about to become the Classics at Washington Park, a group of eight craftsman-inspired townhomes.

From the website: "Four of the homes will be marketed and sold at prevailing market rate prices. The remaining four homes will be reserved for moderate-income homebuyers."

I think this tells you a lot about the neighborhood.

Bryant lives in the neighborhood. So do I. We both want what's best for the area and, after he showed me around the site yesterday, I can say he and I are definitely on the same page.

To see how other City Daily Photo bloggers have interpreted the theme, click here to view thumbnails for all today's participants. City Daily Photo is now 1391 blogs worldwide.