Sunday, January 22, 2012

Rainy Day Mood

The Richard H. Chambers Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Building, seen from the Lower Arroyo

It didn't rain all day yesterday, just all morning. Still, I was in a rainy day mood. I craved the cozy feeling of running the heater and drinking hot tea, and I indulged.

One cloudy day some time ago, PDP's resident geologist Becca and I took our dogs to the Lower Arroyo thinking it wasn't going to rain. It did, of course, as soon as we were as far from our cars as we could possibly get. We were the only non-wild creatures in the Arroyo between the Colorado Street Bridge and South Pasadena. Everyone else, wild or not, knew enough to find shelter.

It began to pour, rattling the leaves and forming puddles on the path. The stream ran full from north to south. Becca and I were soaking wet. We let the dogs run free and they were out of their minds with the joy of it.

Yesterday, Boz curled himself into the shape of a Lima bean and spent most of the day by the heater, with the exception of our neighborhood walk. Now that he's older he craves being cozy, too. Because I know the feeling I run the heater for him, but he turns up his nose at tea.


Here's another view of the Courthouse from the Arroyo, with Boz posing in the foreground.

17 comments:

Kalei's Best Friend said...

I like how you let nature frame that courthouse... Bet Boz's ears would of pricked up if you waved a biscuit in front of him...:-)

alex said...

i like rainy days. helps remind us in Southern California that occasionally there are "seasons."

Petrea Burchard said...

They would and I did, Kalei!

I loved it, Alex. I haven't run the sprinklers in over a month. There's no need.

Cafe Pasadena said...

I know that bldg has changed hands over the decades, but when did it become a county Superior ct house??

Petrea Burchard said...

Thanks for the correction, CP, I've fixed it.

Bellis said...

Lovely photo, just like yesterday morning. The mountains are missing, veiled by cloud. But the rain didn't stay long enough. Hope it comes back tonight, as they promise it will.

You must have been high up when you took that photo, were you in a tree?

Boz does look like a lima bean when he curls up! Brilliant analogy.

Anyone going to watch the art in the Arroyo by the Rose Bowl at 4 pm today? A small plane - remote - carrying paint will crash into a canvas and create an artwork. But whose art will it be - the artist's or the crashing plane's?

Petrea Burchard said...

Hi Bellis, I was up on the western slope of the Arroyo when I took the shot.

We use the Lima bean analogy often and I'm not sure, but I think it started with John, so credit where credit is due.

As for the art it sounds innovative and interesting, but even more than ten years after 9/11 I still don't think I'm ready for plane crash art. I'm surprised at that reaction in myself.

TheChieftess said...

While you were enjoying the rain yesterday, we finally had snow!!! We had a hard time staying cozy though because the snow and wind broke a power pole in our neighborhood and we were out of power for somewhere between 12 and 15 hours!!! That one street still doesn't have access because the power pole is still lying across the street. But all is well, Direct TV dish finally shed the ice and we've got TV, power, heat, snow...life is good!!!

Petrea Burchard said...

Chieftess, aside from the power outage it sounds like things are getting back to normal.

Steve Scauzillo said...

Yeah, it was funny, I rode my bike around TC today and there were puddles and mud. Seems like the rain came and went but the sky was blue.

Ms M said...

Like the mix of the beautiful building and the wildness of the plants in the foreground.
It's cold here today and windy with a chance of snow. Soup, curling up in a chair with a blankie and good book make it cozy.

Susan Campisi said...

I love that you have a resident geologist, although not as much as I love that you have a resident lima bean. Tommy's at that in-between stage: he spends more time curled up in a cozy pose than he used to, but he would still love to tear loose in the rain. I should bring him to the Arroyo next downpour.

Petrea Burchard said...

Steve, we're expecting more tonight, I hear, but the chances may be slim. Just now, as dusk arrives, it's looking cloudy over the mountains.

Ms. M, a friend gave me a Snuggie. It has been keeping me very warm!

I'd wait for warmer rain, Susan, but yes, I highly recommend it for Tommy. You and he will be the only nuts out there except perhaps me and Boz, and that's less likely these days.

Katie said...

Great photo! If it were in B&W it would be almost spooky and beg for a story. Drag to get caught out in the rain at the Arroyo, but maybe that happy jaunt in the rain is what Boz is dreaming about all curled up by the heater. It's been rainy here all day and after zipping out first thing this morning for my bakery/Trader Joe's run I got back into PJs and have been hunkered down at home all day. Heaven.

Petrea Burchard said...

Katie, I just put on my pj's and snarfed a few cookies. It felt like heaven for a few minutes but I think I'll catch hell for it.

Margaret said...

Oh come on, Petrea. You can be a wild thing.

Petrea Burchard said...

You know it, Margaret. Didn't I just say I haven't run the sprinklers in a month?